Will of Fire: Book 1
by Princess of Miracles
Summary: When Daisuke and Veemon are out in Odaiba, they are caught in a storm and wake up in the middle of the tundra. They are then pulled through some new adventures with new friends. NO FLAMES!
1. Into the Old World

"Into the Old World"

**I thought I'd also put down the Disney and Non/Disney theme songs for the characters from the Avatar and Digimon series. These themes took me a while to figure out though. Anyway, I hope you like these songs and agree with them. If not, then tell me what you think suits the characters best. Anyway, Veemon's theme song would be "Friend Like Me" from Aladdin because I think the song fits his wild and playful personality. Daisuke's theme song would be "A Whole New World" from Aladdin because she is shown all these different worlds (the Digital World and the Avatar's world) and wonders around her. Do you agree with these? Please enjoy and review!**

Two years had gone by since MaloMyotismon had been defeated by the Digidestineds and the world now knew that Digimon were real.

Though another secret was discovered during the battle during the Christmas season.

Some of the Digidestineds had the abilities to control a single element and they had been keeping these secrets because they didn't want to get hurt by people who saw them as inhuman.

They had used their powers to help defeat the evil Digimon that attacked and also saved people from getting hurt.

The three siblings from Russia named Yuri and his two sisters Sonya and Anna had the ability to bend water, snow and ice.

Yuri was partnered to a Kuwagamon, Anna was partnered to a Unimon and finally, Sonya was partnered to a Sniimon.

A girl named Catherine from France had the power over air and was partnered to a Floramon.

In Mexico there was a little girl named Rosa who had power over earth and was partnered to a Gotsumon.

Three brothers from China called the Poi brothers also had power over earth and were all partnered to a Syakomon each.

Then there was a girl from India named Mina who was partnered to a Meramon and also had power over fire.

One of the American Digidestineds named Willis who is partnered to the twin Digimon brothers Terriermon and Lopmon had power over air.

He had kept it secret until Daisuke Motomiya had found him in the forest at night practising his Airbending skills.

Willis had been ready to deny being a Bender, but was stopped when the girl showed him that she too was a Bender.

Ken Ichijouji had also confessed to being a Bender when he showed off his skills in moving water and said that before his brother died, Sam had told him to never use his gift or else he would never be safe.

All the other Digidestineds had decided to accept the fact that their friends had these strange powers that they were forced to hide by their families.

The world then became a peaceful place to live in after the danger was over and the Benders came back into the world.

At the moment Daisuke was in the park with Ken, watching him as he practised his Waterbending.

A group of children were watching him in awe, some of them being Benders aswell while their parents stood off to the side watching with smiles.

Ken was dressed in a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows to keep them from getting wet, had on a pair of jeans and black shoes.

His arms moved elegantly as he almost seemed to be dancing as a whip of water moved around his body.

Daisuke was dressed in an orange tank top that cut off at her belly button, baby blue colored yoga pants and white shoes.

The back of her mahogany colored hair was tied up into a ponytail while her bangs and the front of her hair was left down to frame her face and she had on a white collar around her neck that had a gold oval shaped pendant on it.

Carved into the gold pendant was a fancy red heart that had the symbol for mars over it in a lighter shade of red.

It had belonged to the girl's grandmother, Hana, who had gave it to her mother Narumi and so the woman gave the necklace to her youngest daughter.

Jun didn't want the necklace because she stated it was too bulky for her taste.

"Are you done showing off yet, Ken?" the girl asked as she sat on the bench.

On either side of the girl was Veemon and Wormon, both Digimon watching the child of Kindness bend the water around his body.

At the moment Ken had the water moving around his body, waving like the tentacles of an octopus and the children laughed as they clapped at the sight.

Turning his head to look over his shoulder, the plum haired boy smiled at his friend as she watched him show off for the children.

"Oh, I'm almost done. Just wait a little longer, okay?" Ken requested.

Daisuke sighed as she rested her elbows on her knees and then set her face between her hands as she pouted.

"That's what you said ten minutes ago." she muttered.

Wormon looked over at the 13 year old and smiled gently at her.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Ken will be finished soon enough." the green and purple caterpillar assured.

"Mm-hmm. Yeah, sure. When Mr. Popularity is done showing off, tell him I went to the pizza parlor without him. Come on, Veemon." Daisuke said as she stood up.

"Finally, I'm starving!" the blue dragon cried dramatically as he jumped off the bench and followed his human.

Wormon sighed as he watched the duo of Miracles walk off and turned his attention back to Ken as the boy showed everyone his Waterbending skills.

Daisuke yawned as she stretched her arms out, smiling at the warm sunlight that shone down on her face.

It was a beautiful day that spring with the snow and ice now gone while flowers were growing and the birds were returning from their migration.

"Hey, Daisuke, can we get an extra large pizza this time?" Veemon asked.

"You're not gonna eat it yourself are you?" the girl asked him.

"I'll share it. Really, I promise." Veemon said as he gave her a cute grin.

Looking into those wide scarlet eyes, Daisuke couldn't help but smile at her partner in amusement.

"Fine." she sighed making the dragon cheer as he jumped into the air.

They walked along the sidewalk and all around them, they spotted humans running around with their own Digimon partners or there were Benders showing off their abilities.

Nearby was a construction site where they found some Earthbenders were using their powers to work on a building.

At a flourist shop a woman was using her Waterbending skills to water her plants with a smile on her face.

The duo walked by a ramen shop and watched as the cook used his Firebending skills to cook the noodles, vegetables and meat while people watched.

Veemon was humming cheerfully as he walked along, one hand holding onto Daisuke's which made her smile down at her partner.

While walking down the sidewalk, the dragon spotted a colorful store on the side and smiled when he saw the veriaty of candies inside.

He then pressed his face and hands against the glass as he looked inside of the shop to see an old man was at the counter handing a bag of sweets to a little boy who had a Kapurimon on his head.

"Ooh, a candy store! Let's stop here on our way home." Veemon said.

"Okay, but we'll have to hide it. I know Jun will sneak in my room and try to steal some." Daisuke told him as she pulled her partner along.

As they were walking, suddenly the girl's Digivice started beeping and that made her stop walking as she felt curious.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Veemon asked as he stared at the device that was clipped to his human's hip.

"I'm not sure." she said as she held the blue and white Digivice in front of her face.

The screen was flashing red which made her curious as to what this could mean.

Then, car alarms started going off making the humans and Digimon all stop what they were doing as they turned their attention to their surroundings.

Street lights were flashing and street signs seemed to bend as the wind picked up.

Storm clouds appeared as thunder started to sound in the sky and parents were quick to gather their children and rush off for their homes.

"This doesn't look good." Veemon said as he stood close to his human.

"Oh, man. Don't tell me someone else is trying to destroy the world." Daisuke groaned.

"You think?" Veemon asked curiously.

Everyone had hoped that after two years of peace between Earth and the Digital World that there would be no more dangers and battles.

"Maybe it's a storm. Just a normal natural disaster." Veemon said.

"I hope you're right, Veemon." Daisuke said as her hair was whipping around her head from the wind.

Just then, rain started to pour down making people cry out as they started running for cover and Daisuke felt relieved that it was only a storm.

Grabbing Veemon's hand, the girl started running off to the pizza parlor since it was close by, but was stopped when a bolt of lightening hit the ground in front of them.

Crying out in shock, the duo rolled away from the blast and stared at the lightly chared ground in shock.

"I change my mind! I don't want a natural disaster!" Veemon yelled.

"Man, I hate this! Why did a freak storm have to appear now?" Daisuke growled as she picked Veemon up and started running again.

Thunder boomed while streaks of lightening crashed across the sky making the two friends jump in fear in case another bolt hit the ground again.

As they ran, a bolt hit a telephone pole making it fall on top of a car making them scream as they continued running, but the wind was far too strong, it was pushing them back.

"We need to get inside!" Daisuke yelled over the roaring winds.

She really wished that she was an Earthbender like her sister so that she could create a tunnel underground to escape the storm.

A large gust of wind then pushed the girl back, knocking her off her feet making her cry out as she hugged Veemon to her chest as her body twisted in the wind.

Her Digivice then beeped again as it started to glow red and the light swarmed around the bodies of the girl and her dragon.

The light shone through the darkened skies and suddenly, it disappeared along with the two bodies as the storm continued to rage on.

(Later...)

Groaning as she slowly started to wake up, Daisuke found that the ground beneath her body felt very cold and damp.

Opening her chocolate colored eyes, she found that she was staring up at a clear blue sky with white fluffy clouds floating along peacefully.

"What happened?" she moaned.

Suddenly, her eyes snapped open fully as she noticed the cold and sat up to see something very strange.

She was in a field of snow.

"What in the-? Where did all this snow come from?" she asked as she slowly stood up.

Taking in her surroundings, she found that she had woken up in the middle of a continent of snow and ice where there were only large hills of snow, mountains and a frozen lake.

"Did that storm blow us all the way to the South Pole or something? Wait a minute. Veemon? Veemon, where are you?" Daisuke called as she looked around for her dragon.

All she could see in the icy continent was white so she thought it would make finding her little blue friend easy, but she couldn't see him anywhere.

"Veemon!" she cupped her hands over her mouth and called out his name.

Suddenly, a snowbank seemed to move making her look over towards it as she heard moaning.

"Veemon, is that you?" she asked walking over towards the snowbank.

As the snowbank moved, the snow started to fall away to reveal two familiar floppy blue ears.

"Veemon!" Daisuke called as she ran over to the bank and dropped to her knees.

Ignoring the stinging of the cold against her hands, she dug in the snow until she uncovered the shivering dragon.

"Oh, Veemon, are you okay?" she asked pulling him into her arms.

"Oh, Daisuke. Did ya catch the Monochromon that ran me over?" he asked as she rubbed his sore head.

This made the girl crack a smile as she stood up with her dragon in her arms as he cuddled closer to her for warmth.

"Nice to see you're feeling fine, buddy." she said.

"Yeah. Hey, where are we?" Veemon asked as his scarlet eyes took in the area around them.

"I have no idea. Come on. Let's see if we can find any people. Maybe they can help us out." Daisuke said as she started walking.

To be continued...


	2. The Boy in the Iceberg

"The Boy in the Iceberg"

**Aang's theme song is "Go the Distance" from Hercules because he has a long way to go to reach his destiny and new things to learn along the way. Katara's song is "Just Around the Riverbend" from Pocahontas because this song is about the paths in life people take and she wants to take the path where she'll become a great Bender and travel the world. Sokka's song is "Son of Man" from Tarzan because he is working hard to become a man and warrior that will make his father proud of him and so he can because someone he can be proud of too. Please enjoy and review!**

Walking through the snow was a bit difficult when a person wasn't dressed properly for the occaision and it was also annoying Daisuke.

Tracking in the snow with her sneakers was quite irritating since she could feel her toes going numb from the snow melting in her shoes.

She also had to pull her legs out of the snowbanks that she seemed to sink into while Veemon was sitting on her back, clinging to her shoulders.

"Are we there yet?" Veemon asked feeling bored.

"No." Daisuke grunted as she pulled her leg out of a snowbank.

Lifting her leg up, the girl continued on her way through the snow and saw that she was getting closer to the water.

"Are we there yet?" Veemon asked.

"No." Daisuke growled lowly under her breath.

The constant asking was getting her very annoyed and so was tredding through the snow and ice while her fingers were turning red from the cold.

"...Are we there yet?" Veemon asked as he looked down at his human.

Huffing in annoyance, the girl stopped walking and balled her hands into fists as she felt her cheeks burning from the cold.

"Veemon, does it look like we're there yet?! We don't even know where we're going!" Daisuke kicked at the snow in anger, sending up a cloud of the powder around her.

Veemon looked around the continent, unsure of where to go since all he could see was snow and they seemed to be getting closer to the ocean since he could see icebergs drifting over the hills.

"Well, maybe if we knew where we were that would help." the dragon suggested.

Groaning, the mahogany haired girl fell onto her rear, tired of all the struggling she had done to tred through the snow.

"How do people live in places like this?" she asked.

"Maybe they like the cold." Veemon suggested.

"No one likes the cold!" Daisuke cried out.

All of a sudden, a loud crashing sound was heard making the two friends look over in surprise as they saw snow and water rise in the air.

"I wonder what that is." Daisuke blinked at the sight.

"Maybe there are people over there. Come on!" Veemon called.

Jumping down from his partner's back, the dragon then started running off making Daisuke gasp as she chased after the Digimon before he got into trouble.

"Veemon, wait up!" she called.

As she was running, Daisuke couldn't help but wonder what the source of that explosion was, but shook the thought from her mind as she and Veemon ran across the tundra.

After running for a few more minutes, they made it to the source of the explosion and were stunned to find an iceberg in the shape of a sphere.

Standing in front of it were two teenagers dressed in blue coats that had white fur around the sleeves and hood.

They also had the same dark skin tone, turquoise blue eyes and dark brown hair.

The girl appeared to be 14 years old and had two pieces of her hair that were in loops that tied to the long braid she had while the boy was 15 years old and had the sides of his head shaved while the rest of his hair was tied up into a ponytail.

Feeling relieved at finding some life forms, the mahogany haired girl climbed down from the hill she was on top of so that she could approach the duo.

She then started jumping onto the small islands of ice to get over to the two teenagers.

"Um, hello?" Daisuke called.

The two teenagers jumped at the voice and turned around to see the girl with strange colored hair and wore odd clothing and stared at her as she walked over to them.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" the boy demanded as he held his spear out towards her.

"Sokka, don't be rude." the girl frowned at him.

"Well, we heard that noise and decided to check it out." Daisuke explained.

"And why did you decide to check it out?" the boy, Sokka, asked with a look of distrust on his face.

"Because we were lost." Veemon pipped up.

The two teenagers looked down at the dragon, the boy screaming in fright as he jumped up and tripped, falling to the ground in his shock.

"What is that thing?!" he screamed.

"I'm not a thing. I'm Veemon." the Digimon said with a smile.

"And I'm Daisuke. We got lost in a storm and woke up in the middle of nowhere. We've been trying to find some help." the girl explained.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Katara and this is my brother Sokka." the girl smiled kindly at the duo.

"Um, where did this come from?" Veemon asked as he climbed up the ice sphere.

"Oh, it was under the water, but then I kind of, um, made it appear." Katara said sheepishly.

"Made it appear? Like with magic?" Veemon asked as he looked over his shoiulder at her.

"No, with Waterbending." the girl said.

This made Daisuke perk up as she turned to the girl and smiled at her.

"You're a Bender?" she asked.

"Um, sort of. I'm getting there." Katara told her.

Sokka then stood up as he looked over the girl and her strange clothing, unsure if she could be trusted.

"Um, guys? There's something in the iceberg." Veemon called.

"What do you mean?" Sokka asked as he looked over.

The three teenagers looked over at the iceberg and were stunned to find a boy was trapped inside the ice and was in a meditating pose.

Above him was a strange large creature that seemed to be curling its body around the boy.

"How the heck did that happen?" Daisuke gasped.

"I don't know." Sokka said.

Looking closer, they saw that the boy had arrow markings on his head and hands that suddenly glowed as his eyes snapped open making the group gasp.

"He's alive! We have to help!" Katara grabbed her brother's metal club and ran towards the iceberg.

"Katara! Get back here! We don't know what that thing is!" Sokka called.

The Waterbendered ignored him as she ran over to the iceberg while Sokka and Daisuke chased after the girl.

Katara then started swinging the club against the iceberg, creating a dent in the side.

As she struck the iceberg a fifth time, a burst of air spewed from the iceberg and sent the three teenagers skidding back on the ice.

"This is not good." Veemon whimpered as he ran away from the iceberg.

Staring at the sphere, the group watched as a crack appeared in the ice as compressed air escaped.

The iceberg then exploded open and a pillar of light burst out of the sphere and shone high into the sky and there were then blue lights shining in the sky that were surging with energy.

As the pillar faded and the wild wind left, the quartet stood up and stared at the crater that was all that was left of the sphere after the explosion.

Then, the boy climbed out of the crater and slowly stood up as his eyes and the markings on his body glowed an eerie blue color.

"Stop!" Sokka pointed his spear at the boy.

The lights then faded away from the sky while the boys eyes and arrows stopped glowing, causing him to fall forward.

Katara gasped as she rushed forward and caught the boy in her arms while Daisuke and Veemon kneeled beside the girl to look the boy over.

Cautiously, Sokka started to poke the boy in the head with his spear making the girls and dragon glare at him.

"Stop it!" Katara pushed the spear away.

"Hey, I think he's waking up." Daisuke said as she helped Katara turn the boy over and had him resting against the snow on his back.

Moaning softly, the boy's eyes then slowly started to open and revealed two dark gray eyes that stared at Katara's face.

"I need to ask you something." the boy said weakly.

"What?" Katara asked.

"Please, come closer." the boy said with tired eyes.

"What is it?" Katara asked him as she leaned in.

"Will you go penguin sledding with me?" the boy asked, suddenly awake and cheerful.

"Uh, sure, I guess." Katara said as she looked confused.

Suddenly, the boy then seemed to be lifted onto his feet by the air making Sokka flinch back.

"What's going on here?" the boy asked rubbing his head.

"You tell us! How did you get in the ice? And why aren't you frozen?" Sokka asked as he poked the boy with his spear.

Daisuke, Veemon and Katara stood up as they watched the boy look around curiously.

"I'm not sure." the boy said as he batted the spear away.

A soft growling noise was heard making the boy gasp as he climbed up the crater and then jumped inside, landing on the head of a large furry beast.

"Appa! Are you all right?" he asked and then crawled down to the beast's eye as he pulled on the lid to reveal a brown eye.

"Wake up, buddy!" he called.

Jumping down in front of the beast's face, he tried to lift the head, but only managed to lift the creature's lip.

Daisuke, Katara, Veemon and Sokka walked over and gaped at the beast, though Sokka's jaw seemed to be comicaly wide along with his eyes.

The beast then gave a big yawn, his tongue lifting the orange and yellow clad boy up making him giggle.

"Hey, you're okay!" the boy smiled as he jumped down onto his feet.

He then hugged the large six legged bison's head as the beast lifted himself up from the ground.

"What is that thing?" Sokka asked.

"This is Appa, my flying bison." the boy explained.

"Right, and this is Katara, my flying sister." Sokka quipped making his sister give him a look.

Appa then snorted as he gave a massive sneeze, the snot hitting Sokka making him exclaim in disgust.

Dropping to his knees, the boy then started rubbing himself against the snow to clean himself.

"You kinda deserved that." Daisuke crossed her arms.

"Don't worry. It'll wash out." the boy smiled as Sokka pulled snot off his head making the girls gag while Veemon snickered.

"So, do you guys live around here?" the 12 year old boy asked.

"Don't answer that! Did you see that crazy bolt of light? He was probably trying to signal the Fire Navy." Sokka said confusing Daisuke and Veemon.

What did he mean by the Fire Navy?

There was no Fire Navy and there hasn't been since the 1920's.

"Oh, yeah, I'm sure he's a spy for the Fire Navy. You can tell by that evil look in his eyes." Katara said sarcastically.

The boy then smiled with wide gray eyes making Veemon chuckle in amusement.

"The paranoid one is my brother, Sokka. These two are Daisuke and Veemon. You never told us your name." Katara said.

"I'm ahh-ahh-ahh..." the boy stuttered.

He then gave a loud and powerful sneeze that sent him flying up into the sky as the wind whipped around the quartet.

The boy then slid down the side of an ice wall and stood on his feet in front of the three humans and Digimon.

"I'm Aang." the boy said as he wipped at his nose.

"You just sneezed and flew ten feet in the air." Sokka pointed into the sky.

"Really? It felt higher than that." Aang said.

"Wait a sec. You're an Airbender!" Daisuke grinned making Katara smile in awe.

"Sure am." Aang nodded.

"Giant light beams, flying bison, Airbenders. I think I've got midnight sun madness. I'm going home to where stuff makes sense." Sokka said as he walked over to the water.

Sokka then seemed to notice that they were stuck in the middle of the ocean with no way back to the village.

"I don't think you're going anywhere." Veemon stated making the 15 year old scowl at the smirking dragon.

"Well, if you guys are stuck, Appa and I can give you a lift." Aang offered as he jumped up onto Appa's head.

"Sounds great." Daisuke smiled at him as she walked over to the bison.

"We'd love a ride, thanks." Katara said as she walked after the 13 year old.

"Wahoo! Let's go!" Veemon cheered as he bounced after the two girls.

"Oh, no. I am not getting on that fluffy snot monster." Sokka refused as Aang helped Katara climb onto the bison.

Veemon clung to Daisuke's shoulders as the girl lifted herself up into the saddle that Appa wore on his back.

"You hoping some other kind of monster will come along and give you a ride home? You know, before you freeze to death?" Katara asked.

Sokka opened his mouth to retort, but sighed since he had nothing to say.

He then sat in the saddle with a pout as Katara, Daisuke and Veemon were all eager for Aang to start the ride.

"Okay, first time flyers, hold on tight. Appa; yip-yip!" Aang flicked the reigns.

Groaning, Appa then jumped into the air, but then landed in the water, swimming away from the island.

"Come on, Appa. Yip-yip!" Aang flicked the reigns once again.

"Wow, that was truely amazing." Sokka drawled.

"Sokka, shut up." Daisuke said as she and Katara glared at him.

"Appa's just tired. A little rest and he'll be soaring through the sky. You'll see." Aang assured.

Katara then noticed that Aang was watching her with a grin on his face that made her confused.

"Why are you smiling at me like that?" the Waterbender asked.

"Oh, I was smiling?" Aang asked making Daisuke scoff in amusement while Sokka rolled his eyes.

They then floated along peacefully while the sun started to fall from the sky and Sokka curled up as he drifted off to asleep.

Katara then slid over to the end of the saddle to talk to Aang who was lying down on Appa's head.

"Hey." she greeted.

"Hey. What cha thinking about?" the Airbender grinned up at her.

"I guess I was wondering, you being an Airbender and all, if you had any idea what happened to the Avatar." Katara said curiously.

Hearing this, Daisuke turned to the two Benders and wondered why they were talking about an old relic such as the Avatar.

Her grandmother Hana had once told her the story of the Avatar; the master of all elements and about how he vanished from the face of the Earth some day.

No one knew what happened to him or where he was and the world was turned into chaos soon after.

"Uh, no. I didn't know him. I mean, I knew people that knew him, but I didn't. Sorry." Aang said nervously.

"Okay. Just curious. Good night." Katara said a bit disheartened as she crawled down in the saddle.

"Sleep tight." Aang sighed sadly.

Veemon then curled up in his partner's lap as he looked up at the girl.

"Why would Aang know about the Avatar?" he asked.

"Because the last Avatar was an Airbender." Daisuke explained.

"Oh. By the way, what's an Avatar?" Veemon asked making her groan in annoyance.

Afterwards, the others all started to fall asleep as well when night fell.

(The next day...)

Groaning, Daisuke rolled over as her eyes then fluttered open and she found herself covered in blankets and sat up to see she was inside of a tent.

"Where the heck am I?" she asked.

"You're in the South Pole." an elderly voice spoke.

Jumping slightly, the girl turned to see an old woman walk into the tent with an armful of clothes in her arms and a pair of brown boots resting on the pile.

"Um, hi." Daisuke greeted the woman.

"My grandchildren brought you to the village. You were soaked to the bone and were as cold as ice. You could've caught your death." the woman smiled.

Chocolate eyes blinked at that as Daisuke heard snoring and looked to her side to find Veemon was sleeping beside her.

"Well, it was a good thing Katara and Sokka brought me here. I'm Daisuke by the way. Daisuke Motomiya." the girl smiled.

"It's nice to meet you, dear. I am Kana, but you can call me Gran Gran. Here. I brought you some clothes to change into." the woman said.

Kana handed the blue coat to Daisuke who accepted it with a smile as she looked over the blue coat with purple designs and the fur decorating the coat.

"Thanks." Daisuke stood up and pulled the coat on and slipped on the purple gloves and a pair of brown boots.

Veemon snorted in his sleep as he then pulled the blanket closer to himself to keep warm which made the girl roll her eyes at him while Kana shook her head.

Katara then walked into the tent and smiled when she found her new friend awake and properly dressed for the winter weather.

"Oh, great, you're up. Come on, let's go get Aang so we can introduce you both to the village. Hi, Gran Gran." Katara waved at her grandmother as she puleld Daisuke out of the tent.

The two girls then made their way to a different tent while Daisuke took in the village and saw the tents where the people lived while walls of ice were around the village.

What she found strange was that there were only children, women and elderly people around.

There were no men around at all; only women and children filled the village.

She found this very strange, but stored this fact away as they entered Aang's tent and found the boy tossing and turning in his sleep.

It appeared that he was having a nightmare and this made the girls exchange worried looks.

Katara kneeled beside him and shook him awake, calling his name.

"Aang? Aang, wake up!" Katara called making him gasp as he sat up in shock.

"It's okay. We're in the village now. Come on, get ready. Everyone's waiting to meet you." Katara said as she stood up.

The two girls watched as the boy pulled his top on and his shoes and stared at the tattooes he had on his body.

Grabbing his arm, Katara then pulled Aang out of the tent while Daisuke followed and found the villagers all gathered together.

"Guys, this is the entire village. Entire village, Aang and Daisuke." Katara introduced.

Aang clasped his hands over the staff he held and bowed his head while Daisuke clasped her hands in front of her waist as she bowed her head as well.

Some children hugged their mothers as they stared at the strangers in slight fear.

"Uh, why are they all looking at me like that? Did Appa sneeze on me?" Aang asked as Kana stepped forward.

"Well, no one has seen an Airbender in a hundred years. We thought they were extinct until my granddaughter and grandson found you." Kana stated.

"Extinct?" Aang asked confused while Daisuke grew suspicious yet again with the information she was gathering.

"Aang, this is my grandmother." Katara said.

"Call me Gran Gran." Kana said with a blank look.

"What is this? A weapon? You can't stab anything with this." Sokka walked over and grabbed Aang's staff, looking it over.

"It's not for stabbing, it's for Airbending." Aang used the wind to pull the staff into his hands.

Orange wings then extended from the staff making Sokka yelp while the children watched in awe.

"Magic trick! Do it again." a little girl said.

"Not magic. Airbending. It let's me control the air currents around my glider and fly." Aang explained.

"Cool." Daisuke smiled.

"You know, last time I checked, humans can't fly." Sokka critisized.

"Check again!" Aang said as he held his glider to his back and jumped into the air.

Everyone watched as the Airbender then started to soar through the air making the kids smile in awe at the sight.

Veemon yawned as he walked out of the tent, arms stretched out above his head.

"Man, what a great nap." he smiled as he rubbed his eyes.

Hearing laughing, he opened his eyes to see Aang flying through the sky on a glider.

"Whoa, nice moves." the dragon smiled as he ran over to where his partner was.

Aang saw that Katara was watching him and grinned big at her, not paying attention to where he was going and his glider rammed into a snow tower.

Kana frowned while Daisuke chuckled, but pretended to cough when the old woman gave her a stern gave.

Katara then ran over when Aang pulled himself out of the snow and tumbled to the ground.

"My watch tower!" Sokka cried in a high pitched voice.

"That was amazing." Katara helped Aang stand up as the children gathered around.

"Nice moves up there." Daisuke said as she picked Veemon up and carried him over to the crowd.

Sokka rushed over to his tower to check on the damage, but then a pile of snow fell on top of him.

"Great. You're an Airbender, Katara's a Waterbender. Together you can waste time all day long." Sokka stood up and walked off.

"Bending isn't a waste of time. It can be used to build nations and create weapons." Daisuke called after him.

"Whatever." Sokka called making the girl growl in annoyance.

"He's asking for a beating." Veemon stated as he felt amusement of his partner getting annoyed.

"You're a Waterbender?" Aang asked Katara.

"Well, sort of. Not yet." Katara answered him.

"All right, no more playing. Come on, Katara, you have chores." Kana said as she escorted her granddaughter away.

"I told you, he's the real thing, Gran Gran! I finally found a Bender to teach me." Katara said excitedly as she and her grandmother walked off.

"Katara, try not to put all your hope in this boy." Kana advised.

"But he's special, I can tell. I sense he's filled with much wisdom." Katara said as she and Kana looked over to the boy.

"See, now my tongue is stuck to my staff!" Aang smiled with his staff stuck to his tongue.

A little boy then pulled on it making the other children laugh along with Daisuke and Veemon.

Sighing, the mahogany haired girl then thought over why things seemed so different.

She couldn't put her finger on it, but there was something off about this village and the people in it.

Why was Sokka talking about the Fire Navy and why did Kana say that Airbenders were extinct?

A few hours later, Daisuke was watching Sokka talking to the children and wondered what was going on.

"Hey, Daisuke, what's wrong? You're thinking really hard about something." Veemon told her.

"Something seems off. I don't know what it is, but I'm going to find out. Maybe Sokka will know." Daisuke said.

"Yeah, like Mister Judgemental will tell ya anything." Veemon muttered.

They crossed their arms and stood by as they watched Sokka march in front of the children, appearing to be acting like a solider.

"Now men, it's important that you show no fear when facing a Firebender. In the Water Tribe, we fight till the last man standing. Without courage, how can we call ourselves men?" Sokka asked.

Some of the little boys appeared to be bored or uninterested by what the teenager was saying.

"He's talking to the wrong crowd." Veemon shook his head.

"I gotta pee!" one of the boys raised his hand.

"Listen, until your fathers return from the war, they're counting on you to be the men of this tribe. And that means no potty breaks!" Sokka exclaimed.

"But I realy gotta go." the boy said.

"Okay, who else has to go?" Sokka sighed in annoyance.

All the boys then raised their hands making Sokka slap his forehead as the boys stood up and walked off to take a potty break.

"War? What war?" Veemon asked as he looked at his partner who appeared to be deep in thought.

"Have you seen Aang? Gran Gran said he disappeared over an hour ago." Katara walked over to her brother.

"Wow, everything freezes in there." Aang chuckled as he walked out of an outhouse made of snow and the children laughed at him.

"Ugh! Katara, get him out of here. This lesson is for warriors only." Sokka said.

Hearing cheering, he looked over to find the children using Appa's tail as a slide which made Veemon rush over to join in.

Katara and Daisuke laughed in amusement at this while Sokka ran over when he saw his spear being used to hold Appa's tail up.

"Stop it right now! What's wrong with you? We don't have time for fun and games with the war going on." Sokka said as he grabbed his spear.

"What war? What are you talking about?" Aang asked as he jumped off of Appa.

"You must be kidding, right?" Sokka deadpanned.

Aang then stared at something behind the three teenagers and Digimon, and then grinned widely.

"Penguin!" he yelled cheerfully.

Turning around, Daisuke spotted a penguin that had four flippers and had a face like a seal which confused her.

Stunned, the seal/peguin then quickly waddled off to get away from the crazy boy who chased after it.

"He's kidding, right?" Sokka asked.

Katara shook her head as she then followed after the boy as Daisuke stood beside Sokka and turned to him, determined to get an answer out of him.

"What do you mean a war?" she asked him making the boy look at her with a frown.

"Not you too. The 100 year war created by the Firebenders. Remember that?" Sokka asked making her blink in shock.

"Huh? But that happened 164 years ago!" Daisuke exclaimed stunning the turquoise eyed boy.

"What?! Have you lost your mind?" Sokka yelled as he stared at the girl.

Frowning at the girl, he then remembered her clothing and looked down at the dragon that was standing beside her.

Thinking over what the girl said and the knowledge she had, he then decided to ask her some questions.

"What year is it?" the Water Tribe boy asked her.

"It's 2014 of course." she answered making him narrow his eyes.

"No it's not. It's 1850." Sokka told her.

Veemon's scarlet eyes then grew wide in shock as he looked over at his partner and saw she had a shocked look on her face.

Her mind went back to the storm she was caught in and remembered how her Digivice had acted up before it hit.

While she and Veemon were thrown into the air by the wind, she was sure that she saw a red light before she blacked out, but thought she was hallusinating.

"That's... There's no way... Oh, why does this stuff happen to me?" the girl whined as she burried her face in her hands.

"Okay, what are you talking about? Why do you think it's 2014?" Sokka demanded.

"Because I think that storm I was in sent me into the past." Daisuke answered.

Hearing this, Sokka was about to deny it and state that she had some mental problems, but was stopped when he saw a flare being launched into the sky.

Daisuke gasped when she saw the flare while everyone else in the village were confused and worried about what had set the flare off.

"What is that?" Daisuke asked.

"Nothing good." Sokka frowned.

"I could've told ya that." Veemon deadpanned.

To be continued...


	3. The Avatar Returns

"The Avatar Returns"

**Iroh's song is "We Are One" from the Lion King 2 because he has an great understanding of the world and has great wisdom inside of him. Zuko's song is "You Can't Take Me" from Spirit because he is going through many changes in his life and is trying to prove that he's his own person and can't be controlled by his father or sister. Please enjoy and review!**

When Katara and Aang returned to the village, Sokka was angry while everyone else was frightened from the flare that had been set off.

Daisuke was reeling at the fact that the storm she was in had sent her 164 years into the past, but was thankful that Veemon was there with her.

But still, they were now in the time period when the Fire Nation was still trying to rule over the rest of the elemental nations and that meant that the cruel Fire Lord was still in control.

"Yay! Aang's back!" the children cheered as they spotted the two Benders walking over.

"I knew it! You signaled the Fire Navy with that flare!" Sokka accused as he broke through the crowd.

Daisuke and Veemon walked over as well, eager to learn where that flare had come from and what had caused it.

"You're leading them right to us, aren't you?" Sokka demanded as he pointed at the Airbender.

"Aang didn't do anything!" Katara protested as she stepped forward.

"It was an accident." she said with her hands on her hips.

"Yeah. We were on the ship and there was this booby trap and, well, we boobied right into it." Aang rubbed his head sheepishly.

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute!" Daisuke waved her hands to get their attention.

"Let me see if I get this. You were on abandoned ship and you accidentally tripped a booby trap?" she asked.

"Pretty much." Aang said making the girl slap her forehead and sigh in disbelief.

Kana then stepped forward with a worried frown on her face as she looked at her granddaughter.

"Katara, you shouldn't have gone on that ship. Now we could all be in danger!" Kana said urgently.

"Don't blame Katara. I brought here there. It's my fault." Aang hung his head.

"Aha! The traitor confesses!" Sokka exclaimed triumphantly.

He then looked at the children that were standing around the 12 year old and gestured for them to move back to where the villagers were standing.

"Warriors, away from the enemy! The foreigner is banished from our village!" Sokka said as the children sadly walked away.

"Sokka, you're overreacting." Daisuke frowned at the Inuit boy.

"Daisuke's right, Sokka. You're making a mistake." Katara told her brother.

"No, I'm keeping my promise to Dad. I'm protecting you from threats like him." Sokka thrusted his finger at Aang.

"He's not our enemy! Don't you see? Aang has brought us something we haven't had in a long time... Fun." Katara stressed with a sad look.

"Fun? Fun?! We can't fight Firebenders with fun!" Sokka yelled in annoyance.

"You should try it sometime." Aang smiled cheerfully.

"You're not helping yourself." Veemon called to the boy making him pout.

"Get out of our village! Now!" Sokka yelled at the boy.

"Grandmother, please! Don't let Sokka do this!" Katara begged her grandmother in fear of her new friend leaving.

"Katara, you knew going on that ship was forbidden. Sokka is right. I think it best if the Airbender leave." Kana said sternly.

"Fine! Then I'm banished too!" Katara declared in outrage.

Stomping over to Aang, she grabbed his hand as she dragged him over to the sleeping bison.

"Come on, Aang, let's go." she said.

"Katara, wait! Don't do something you'll regret." Daisuke called as she held a hand out.

Beside her, the young warrior appeared shocked by what his sister had said and then scowled in anger.

"Where do you think you're going, Katara?" Sokka shouted after her.

"To find a Waterbender. Aang is taking me to to the North Pole." Katara shouted over her shoulder as she continued walking towards Appa.

"I am? Great!" Aang chirped cheerfully at this news.

"Katara! Would you really choose him over your tribe? Your own family?" Sokka called sadly making his sister stop walking.

Aang then looked at teh saddened girl that had released his hand and came to his own desicion.

"Katara, I don't want to come between you and your family." Aang told her as he walked over to his bison to mount him.

"So, you're leaving the South Pole? This is goodbye?" Katara asked sadly as she watched the boy.

"Thanks for penguin sledding with me." Aang smiled at her as she walked closer to him.

"Where will you go?" the Waterbender asked.

"Guess I'll go back home and look for the other Airbenders. Wow... I haven't cleaned my room in 100 years! Not looking forward to that." Aang grinned making Daisuke and Veemon laugh.

"Well, it was nice meeting ya. Who knows? Maybe we'll see each other again." the mahogany haired girl said as she walked over.

The gray eyed boy smiled at the girl and nodded at her and the blue dragon.

He then Airbended himself onto Appa's head and glanced over the villagers with a smile.

"It was nice meeting everyone." he said.

"Let's see your bison fly now, Airboy." Sokka crossed his arms with a sneer.

Sighing, Veemon then punched the boy in the hip making him yelp as he rubbed the sore spot and glared at the smirking dragon.

"Come on, Appa, you can do it. Yip-yip!" Aang encouraged as she flicked the reins.

Appa lightly growled as he climbed to his feet making Sokka smirk.

"Yeah, I thought so!" he called after the boy and his beast.

Groaning softly in annoyance, Daisuke turned towards the 15 year old and frowned at him as the children then appeared upset.

A little girl then ran forward, crying.

"Aang, don't go. I'll miss you." the girl said with tearfilled eyes.

"I'll miss you too." Aang said with a sad expression as he then looked down at Katara and Daisuke as they gave him sad looks.

"Come on, boy." Aang said as Appa started lumbering off.

The little girl looked down sadly and Daisuke patted her head making the girl look up at her with teary blue eyes.

She saw that a pair of chocolate brown eyes were staring back at her with an encouraging look.

"He'll be back some day. Don't worry." Daisuke assured the little girl who then nodded and started walking back over to her mother.

Kana was then making her way over to where her granddaughter stood.

"Katara, you'll feel better after you-"

The old woman was cut off by her granddaughter turning towards her with an angered look on her face.

"Are you happy now? There goes my one chance at becoming a Waterbender." she said as she then stormed off.

Kana looked down sadly at this and Daisuke sighed as she placed a hand on the old woman's shoulder.

"She won't be mad at you forever. Don't worry about it. Just give her some space." the girl advised.

The gray haired woman sighed as she looked at the girl with strange hair that seemed to glow like fire in the light of the setting sun and nodded.

"I hope you're right, my dear. But now we have more important things to deal with." Kana said.

"All right, ready our deffences. The Fire Nation could be at our shores any moment now." Sokka said as the little boys ran intot he village.

One of the boys stopped by him and raised his hand.

"But I gotta-"

"And no potty breaks!" Sokka growled as he pointed to the village and the boy ran off after his friends.

Sighing, Daisuke walked over to where Veemon was waiting on her while the women and elderly quickly went back to their tents.

"What do we do now?" Veemon asked.

"I don't know, Veemon. But I'm worried. Come on, maybe we can find a way to help the others. There has to be a way to evacute the village." Daisuke frowned as she walked into the village.

"I'm afraid there's not." an old woman said as she walked over to the girl and dragon.

"What?" the duo of Miracles asked.

"There's nothing but snow and ice. There are no boats to escape on and we'd get caught even if we tried with the canoes we have." the white haired woman said sadly.

"What about tunnels or caves? Isn't there any place like that to hide?" Daisuke asked.

"No." the woman shook her head as she went off to her tent.

The girl looked over to where the water was located, but saw that a fog had started to drift over the ocean.

Shaking her head, the girl then headed back into the village while her fists were clenched as she tried to think of what to do to help.

A half hour later, Sokka was dressed in his tribe's armour and had his face painted white, gray and black with war paint.

He climbed up onto the ice wall waiting for the Fire Navy to arrive with a metal club in his hand, his face void of emotion as he stared into the fog.

The ground then started to shake making everyone turn towards the wall and grew worried as the wall started to crumble under Sokka's feet.

Looking to his right, he saw his tower crumble and fall to the ground.

"Oh, man." he whined.

"Sokka, get down from there and run!" Daisuke yelled as she ran over with Veemon following.

"Oh, maaan..." Sokka said fearfully as the large ship appeared through the fog and was a few feet away from him.

Katara ran through the village as the women and children ran away from the wall screaming as it started to fall apart.

She then helped her grandmother into a tent while Veemon picked up a child that had fallen on the ice and he carried the child into one of the tents.

"Sokka, get out of the way!" Katara yelled at her brother as he remained on the ice wall with his club raised.

The snow then pushed him down the wall making him cry out and then everyone stared at the ship as it stopped moving and steam was released from the ship.

Feeling curious, the villagers then walked out of their tents and igloos to stare at the ship while Veemon stood by his human, scarlet eyes narrowed at the ship.

The front of the ship then fell forward, opening like a staircase while Sokka stumbled away before he was hit.

Mothers then held their children close as a way to provide comfort and protection.

Through the steam of the ship, out stepped a young man clad in red armour with a metal helmet on his head and there were two other men who followed him as he walked off the ship.

Standing up, Sokka then gave a battle cry as he ran towards them with his club raised as four more men walked off the ship.

The leader kicked the club out of Sokka's hand and then kicked him to the side, into the pile of snow.

Everyone then gasped as the young man walked over to the villagers as the duo of Miracles stood in front of Kana and Katara.

"Where are you hidding him?" the young man questioned as his gold eyes roamed over the villagers.

Looking closely at him, Daisuke was able to see that the boy was at least a year or two older than her and the left side of his face had a scar on it.

Reaching out, he grabbed Kana and pulled her from her granddaughter's arms.

"He'd be about this age, master of all elements." he said making everyone stare at him.

He then released Kana allowing her to run over to Katara while Daisuke glared at the boy, her hands curled into fists.

Sweeping his arm out towards the villagers, a stream of flames whipped out making the people cry out in fear while Daisuke and Veemon stood their ground as the flames licked at their faces.

"I know you're hidding him." he declared.

"Hidding who?" Daisuke demanded as she stepped forward.

The young man then turned his golden eyes on the tanned girl in front of him and he was stunned to see that she had mahogany colored hair and her chocolate brown eyes seemed to have a tint of red mixed in them.

There was no fear on her face as she stared at him, only anger and determination.

"The Avatar. I know he's here." he said.

"Are you crazy? Everyone knows the Avatar was killed when Sozin attacked the Air Temples years ago. Even the dumbest person on Earth knows that." Daisuke said as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Really? Even Tai knows that?" Veemon blinked as he looked up at his human.

The Firebenders appeared stunned when they saw the dragon standing by the girl's side while the girl herself felt like grinning at the remark Veemon made about their friend, Tai Kamiya, but she hardened her expression.

On the ship was an old man dressed in a red robe and he had long silver colored hair with a topknot on his head and a beard.

He was staring at the duo of Miracles with a thougtful expression on his face while his gold eyes held amusement.

Meanwhile, the young leader was confused by what he heard and saw, but before he could respond though, Sokka stood up and ran at the male with his metal club, giving a batte cry.

Turning towards him, the male ducked down and threw Sokka over his head and the boy landed in the snow, his war paint bleeding off his face.

A stream of flame was then shot at him and he rolled out of the way, got to his knees and threw his metal boomerang at the male who gasped as he jumped back, barely dodging.

"Show no fear!" a little boy called as he threw a spear over to Sokka and he caught it.

He then ran towards the male who then used his arms to break the spear and then he grabbed the remaining part out of Sokka's hands and jabbed him in the head with it making Sokka fall on his rear.

Snapping the stick in half, the Firebender then threw the pieces into the snow while Sokka rubbed his head.

The boomerang then circled back around and hit the Firebender in the back of the head making him cry out in shock while Veemon started snickering.

Flame daggers then appeared in the male's hands as he glared down at Sokka while Daisuke ran over to her friend, Veemon gasping as he followed after her.

Suddenly, Aang appeared, sledding towards them on the back of a penguin and knocked the Firebender off his feet, making him fall face first into the snow while his helmet landed on his rear.

The children all cheered until they were covered in snow when Aang sledded past them, but then they started cheering again as they shook the snow off.

Smiling, Aang was then thrown off the penguin's back as the creature waddled off.

"Hey Katara, hey Sokka. Oh, hey Daisuke and Veemon." Aang smiled at his friends.

"Hi, Aang, thanks for coming." Sokka said dryly.

Everyone then turned their attention back to the Firebender who stood up, his head now bare and showing off that he was bald with only a ponytail of dark brown hair on his head.

He then took a stance while his men spread out, ready to attack the Airbender as he stood ready to fight.

Spinning around, he hit his staff on the ground, making the snow rise up and blind the Firebenders.

"Looking for me?" Aang asked.

"You're the Airbender? You're the Avatar?" the scarred teenager asked.

"Aang?" Katara asked in shock.

"No way." Sokka whispered.

"Impossible." Daisuke breathed out.

"Wow. What's the Avatar?" Veemon asked confused making his partner bonk him over the head.

Aang and the Firebender then started circling each other as the teenager took in the boy's appearance.

"I've spent years preparing for this encounter. Training, meditating; you're just a child!" the Firebender glared.

"Well, you're just a teenager." Aang stated.

Said teenager then blasted flames at the boy making his spin his staff around, blocking the flames from hitting him, but the children and women all cried out in fear when the flames got too close.

Seeing this, Aang then came to a desicion as he slammed his staff onto the ground beside him.

"If I go with you, will you promise to leave everyone alone?" Aang asked.

Dropping his stance, the Firebender nodded and his men then grabbed the boy's arms and took away his staff.

"No, Aang, don't do this!" Katara called as the boy was escourted to the ship.

"Don't worry, Katara, it'll be okay." Aang assured her.

The Waterbender looked close to crying as Daisuke stood beside her, watching as the famous Avatar who disappeared over a century ago was captured by the Fire Nation.

"Take care of Appa for me until I get back." he called over his shoulder.

"Head a course for the Fire Nation! I'm going home." the teenager said as the Firebenders disappeared on the ship.

(Later on...)

Daisuke, Katara and Veemon were looking out to the sea while the women and children were trying to repare the damage that was done to their village.

Sokka was behind the girls and dragon, secrectly filling a canoe with supplies.

"We have to go after that ship, Sokka. Aang saved our tribe and now we have to save him." Katara spoke in determination.

"Katara, I-" Sokka began.

"Why can't you realize that he's on our side? If we don't help him, no one else will. I know you don't like Aang, but we owe him." Katara said.

"Katara! Are you gonna talk all day or are you coming with me?" Sokka asked as he gestured to the canoe.

Daisuke and Veemon smiled at the boy while Katara turned to face her brother.

"Well?" he asked.

"Sokka! Thank you, thank you!" Katara gushed as she ran over and hugged her brother.

"Get in. We're going to save your boyfriend." Sokka smirked while Veemon grinned mischivously at this.

"He's not my-"

"Does it really matter?" Daisuke cut the girl off as she walked over to the siblings.

"Are we going to do this or what?" Veemon asked with a smile.

"What do you think you're doing?" someone spoke up.

Stunned, the quartet turned around to face Kana as she walked over to her grandchildren and the duo of Miracles.

Kana simply smiled at them as she held out two sleeping rolls filled with supplies.

"You'll need these. You have a long journey ahead of you." she told them.

The group appeared to be surprised by this as the woman stepped closer to them and held out the rolls.

"It's been so long since I had hope." Kana said as she handed the rolls to Katara and then pulled the girl into a hug.

"But you brought it back to life, my little Waterbender." she smiled softly.

Pulling away from her granddaughter, Kana then walked over to Sokka and pulled him into a hug as well.

"And you, my brave warrior, be nice to your sister." she said.

"Yeah, okay, Gran Gran." sighed as he patted his grandmother's back.

Looking over at Daisuke and Veemon, Kana smiled at them as well.

"And you two make sure they stay safe." she told them.

"We'll try our best." Daisuke nodded.

"You can count on us." Veemon held up a fist in determination.

"Aang is the Avatar. He's the world's only chance, you all found him for a reason. Now your destinies are intertwined with his." Kana spoke seriously.

"There's no way we're going to catch a warship with a canoe." Katara said as he gestured to the ship.

"Um, can I make a suggestion?" Veemon spoke up making everyone look at him.

(A few minutes later...)

"You just love taking me out of my comfort zone, don't you?" Sokka asked as he and Katara sat in Appa's saddle.

Standing off to the side was Daisuke and she was with Kana while Veemon was sitting in the snow, waiting until his partner was ready to leave.

After all the kindness that the old woman had given her, Daisuke wanted to come clean about her heritage.

"Um, look, I need to tell you something." the girl said as she turned to face the woman.

"I know what nation you're a part of." Kana interupted her.

This made Daisuke's eyes go wide as she stared at the woman, looking for any sign of mistrust or hatred.

"How-How did you know?" she asked.

"You're necklace. I knew as soon as I saw it, but I also know that you're not like the others. You're a very kind and gentle person." Kana smiled.

Daisuke smiled at this as she lifted her hand up and cupped her hand around the pendant she wore around her neck.

"Not all of us are bad. Some of us just want to live in peace. I just hope Sokka doesn't freak." she sighed.

Yelling was then heard making Daisuke and Kana look up into the sky to see Appa had taken off into the air with Katara and Sokka in his saddle.

"Hey! They ditched us!" Veemon yelled in anger as he jumped to his feet.

Rolling her eyes at her Digimon, Daisuke reached into her pocket and pulled out her Digivice making Kana stare at it strangely.

She had never seen a deivce such as this before and wondered what it was.

The other women and children of the village then walked over to watch as Appa flew off.

"Veemon, it's time to fly!" Daisuke called.

Turning to his human, Veemon saw the Digivice and grinned big as he ran over towards her as the Digivice began to shine a baby blue colored light around them.

"Veemon digivolve too..."

His body was then covered in the light as his body grew to nine feet tall, his muscles filled out and a blade-like horn appeared on his nose.

Large white wings grew out of his back and a silver colored X was on his white chest.

"EX-VEEMON!"

When the light faded away, everyone gasped in awe and shock at the sigth of the dragon in front of them and Daisuke ran over to him.

"Let's move, Ex-Veemon!" Daisuke called as she jumped onto her partner's back.

"You got it, Daisuke. Hang on!" Ex-Veemon yelled as he jumped into the air and flapped his wings.

The dragon then flew through the air, chaisng after the flying bison while the villagers watched in awe.

Appa had a head start since he took off earlier and at a great speed to go save his partner, so Ex-Veemon was beating his wings hard to catch up to their friends.

"You know you're gonna have to tell them about your Bending." the Champion stated.

"I know. But I'll do it after we get Aang back from Prince Attitude Problem." Daisuke narrowed her eyes as the wind blew her hair from her face.

Nodding at this, Ex-Veemon narrowed his scarlet eyes as he soared through the air, listening for any sounds of the ship and even sniffed at the air to get a scent of the burning coal.

Catching the scent, he smirked and chased after the scent.

When they found the boat, they saw Appa was flying through the sky and the scarred Firebender knocked Aang off of the ship and into the water.

"No! Aang!" Katara called out in horror.

"Ex-Veemon, get down there now!" Daisuke called.

"Right!" Ex-Veemon nodded as he swooped down.

Flying down to the ship, some of the crew caught sight of the dragon and cried out in fear.

"Dragon!" a man yelled.

The old man from earlier watched as the dragon flew near the ship, but didn't say anything ro appear to be frightened or shock like everyone else.

The teenager looked over at the dragon with wide eyes and was stunned to see the girl from the village was ridding the blue beast.

"Is that Daisuke?" Sokka asked.

"Yeah, but what happened to Veemon?" Katara asked.

A few men then shot fire towards Ex-Veemon, but he then used his Vee Laser and blasted an orange colored beam of light in the shape of a V towards the flames and extinguished them.

"You're gonna need to do better than that!" Ex-Veemon called as he flew over the crew making them duck to the deck.

Just then, a pillar of water shot out of the ocean making everyone turn to see Aang was in the center of the pillar, his eyes and tattooes glowing.

He landed on the deck and then bent the water spout into a a wave that he used to knock back the soliders.

The teenage Firebender was thrown overboard by the wave and he grabbed onto the side of the ship before he fell into the ocean.

"Did you see what he just did?" Katara asked in awe.

"Now that is some Waterbending." Sokka said, impressed.

"Ken's gonna be jealous." Daisuke commented.

Aang then fell to the deck as his eyes and tattooes stopped glowing, and Daisuke jumped off of her dragon's back and ran over towards her new friend to check on him.

"Aang!" she called as she kneeled beside him and pulled the boy into her arms.

"Aang, you need to wake up." she said as she lightly slapped his cheek.

Appa and Ex-Veemon landed on the deck so Katara and Sokka could run over to check on their friend as well.

"Aang! Is he okay, Daisuke?" Katara asked worriedly as she dropped to her knees beside them.

"Yeah, I think so." Daisuke said as Aang then slowly woke up.

Gray eyes opened and looked at the three young teenagers that had gathered around him.

"Hey Katara, hey Daisuke, hey Sokka. Thanks for coming." he smiled tiredly at them.

"Well, I couldn't let you have all the glory." Sokka stated smugly.

Aang just smiled at him and then looked over to the side where he found his staff just lying on the ground near the edge of the ship.

"I dropped my staff." Aang said.

"Don't worry, I got it." Sokka assured as he stood and ran over to retrieve the staff.

He then stopped in front of the staff and picked it up, but yelped in surprise as he saw the scarred teenager was holding onto the other end, dangling over the water.

The 16 year old and the 15 year old then struggled to pullt he staff out of the other person's hand, but then Sokka jabbed the other male in the head witht he staff until the Firebender then let go of the staff.

He gasped as he fell towards the ocean below, but grabbed onto the chain of the anchor.

"Ha! That's from the Water Tribe!" Sokka cheered down at the scowling teen.

"Gloat later, ya moron! We gotta move!" Ex-Veemon called over to the boy.

Katara and Daisuke were helping Aang settle down in Appa's saddle while the soldiers were rising to their feet.

"We've got trouble." Daisuke gasped.

Katara then turned to face the soldiers and she tried to consertrate as bent a stream of water upwards making the men stare in surprise.

She then tried to whip the waters towards the men, but the water only flung behind her and froze Sokka's feet to the ground.

"Katara!" Sokka whined as he then tried to free himself by hitting the ice with his metal boomerang.

The soldiers then pointed their weapons towards the Waterbender while Daisuke jumped down beside her friend.

"Focus, Katara!" she encouraged.

"I'm trying." the turquoise eyed girl said.

As the men advanced on the girls, Katara gave a gasp of surprise as she turne dher back on the men and swung her arms, sending a wave of water at the men and froze them.

Turning back around, Katara saw what she had done and felt a bit prideful in herself for managing to stop the men.

"We gotta move." Daisuke said.

"Right. Hurry up, Sokka!" Katara called over to her brother as she climbed into Appa's saddle.

"I'm just a guy with a boomerang. I didn't ask for all this flying and magic." Sokka complained as he continued to break the ice around his feet.

"Hold on, Sokka, I'm coming!" Daisuke called as she ran over towards him as Appa took to the air.

She stopped in front of the ice and stared at it, then took in a deep breath as she felt her body begin to heat up.

Kneeling, she then placed her hands on the ice as they began to get warmer and steam rose from the ice.

Sokka stared in surprise as he witnessed the ice melt away from his feet and stared down at the girl, not believing what he had just witnessed.

"You're a Firebender?" he asked.

"Not a trained one." she answered.

Ex‑Veemon then swooped in and grabbed the two teenagers, holding them to his chest as he took to the air.

The young Firebender then got back onto the deck with the help of his uncle, General Iroh, and watched the bison and dragon fly off, escaping with the Avatar and his friends.

"Shoot them down!" the boy, Prince Zuko, yelled.

"Fireball!" Sokka cried as he saw the men shooting fireballs at them.

Aang rose to his feet and opened his glider, then used it to creat a current of air that blasted the fireball into a nearby glacier.

The impact made snow fall down on the ship, halting its movement while the children all cheered at their small victory.

(Later on...)

Appa soared through the sky lazily with Katara and Aang in his saddle while Ex-Veemon was flying beside him with Daisuke and Sokka on his back.

"How did you do that with the water? That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen!" Katara broke the tense silence.

"I don't know. I just sort of...did it." Aang said as he held his knees to his chest and had his arms wrapped around them.

He didn't even look at anyone as he spoke since he was feeling upset.

"Why didn't you tell us that you were the Avatar?" Katara then asked him.

"Because... Because I never wanted to be." Aang sighed sadly.

"But Aang, the world's been waiting for the Avatar to return and finally put an end to this war." Katara said.

"She's right Aang. Without you, even worse things could happen than the Fire Lord trying to destroy the world." Daisuke told him sadly.

This made everyone look over at the girl in confusion.

"Yeah, like what Future Girl?" Sokka asked her.

"Future Girl?" Katara asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, apparently Daisuke's from the future." Sokka shrugged.

"I am! I know what would happen if the Avatar never returned." the female Firebender exclaimed hotly.

Feeling curious of this, Aang turned his attention to her.

"And what would have happened if I wasn't found in that iceberg?" he asked hesitantly.

Daisuke looked down sadly and Ex-Veemon could almost feel the waves of sadness rolling off of his partner.

"A group of non-Benders called the Equalists would have rose up. They hate all Benders and think they're evil. They then start using chi blocking to stop the Benders from using their powers and killed them." she revealed.

Everyone gasped in horror at this.

"There's no way. Why not just go after the Fire Nation? They're the ones who started this war!" Sokka exclaimed in anger.

"They didn't care! The Equalists said that as long as Bending still existed, then there will always be wars and lives will still be ruined. So they destroyed the North Pole, then attacked Omashu, tore apart Ba Sing Se and finally, they destroyed the Fire Nation. I don't even know how they did it! They somehow discovered when the Fire Lord would be weak and killed him. After that, any surviving Benders went into hidding. It didn't matter what nation they came from, they all started helping each other hide. Bending was hidden for 162 years and thought dead from the world. It was only brought back in 2012 because there was a monster trying to destroy the world and our Bending could help weaken him while our Digimon destroyed him." Daisuke explained.

Everyone let this knowledge sink in and felt horrorfied at the news they had been given about the future.

Katara had tears sparkling in her eyes while Aang was hugging his knees to his chest tightly.

"But how was there no Avatar to stop this?" Sokka asked after the news sunk in.

"Grams told me that when the Avatar dies, his energy or whatever is transfered to his next life." Daisuke said.

"Then that's it! If Sokka and I never found Aang, then that means he's still trapped in that iceberg in your time! And since he never died, the Avatar essence won't be able to continue on. It just ended because Aang is still frozen and not able to die." Katara realized.

"Well, at least with the Avatar back, we can make sure the Equalists never rise up and stop this war." Ex-Veemon stated positively.

"But how am I supposed to do that?" Aang asked still feeling depressed.

"Well, according to legend, you need to first master water, then earth, and then fire, right?" Katara tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"That's what the monks taught me." Aang agreed.

"But who's gonna teach him? I mean, you and me are Water and Fire Benders, but we're amatures. Actually, you're an amature and I just suck." Daisuke pouted at her lack of knowledge.

The only person in her family who was a Firebender was her grandmother, but she had died when the girl was 8 years old, before Bending was legalized again.

Her mother Narumi was a Waterbender, her sister Jun was an Earthbender and finally, her father Tamaki was a non-Bender, but his parents were an Earthbender and an Airbender.

She had no one in her family to teach her how to Firebend and she didn't want to go ask someone else to help her.

Katara looked at the 13 year old in amusement, not at all upset by the fact that the girl was a Firebender since she knew that she was different than the Fire Nation.

Sokka had also gotten over this fact quickly as well, but he was still a bit wary of her in case she accidentally roasted him.

As for Aang, he simply didn't care since he used to have friends all around the world, even in the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation.

"If we go to the North Pole, we can find a teacher there and Aang can master Waterbending!" Katara exclaimed with a bright smile.

"We can learn together!" Aang smiled at her, feeling his spirits rise.

"And Sokka, I'm sure you'll get to knock some Firebender heads on the way." Katara turned to her brother who was on the dragon's back.

"I'd like that. I'd really like that." Sokka replied contently.

"Well, I guess that's settles it. We're off to the North Pole!" Daisuke cheered.

"Yeah, we're in this together." Katara added happily.

"All right, but before I learn Waterbending, we have some serious business to attend to," Aang said as he pulled a scroll out of his shirt.

He unrolled the scroll to reveal that it was a map and started pointing to various islands on the scroll as his friends stared at in curiosity.

"Here, here and here." Aang said as he pointed them out.

"What's there?" Katara asked him.

"Here, we'll ride the hopping llamas, then waaay over here we'll surf ont he backs of giant koi fish. Then back over here, we'll ride the hog monkeys." the Airbender said excitedly as he pointed out the islands on the map.

Daisuke, Sokka and Katara all gave him strange looks while the boy simply smiled at them all, serious in his decisions.

"They don't like people riding them, but that's what makes it fun." Aang declared.

"Hey, I'm all for it. It sounds like fun. But I just have one question... What's the Avatar?" Ex-Veemon asked.

Everyone was silent at this, but then the female Firebender groaned in aggravation.

"EX-VEEMON!" she yelled making Sokka, Katara and Aang laugh while the dragon was confused as to what he said wrong.

To be continued...


	4. The Southern Air Temple

"The Southern Air Temple"

**Appa and Momo's theme song would be "Hakuna Matata" because these two just seem to go with the flow during the series. Roku's song would be "He Lives In You" because this seems like a song that suits all the Avatars because of the knowledge they pass on to others from their life and even through death. Please enjoy and review!**

After Daisuke had explained to Veemon what the Avatar was, the group found a beach near the forest to set up camp.

It was now a new day as the sun rose up into the sky, but Sokka was still resting peacefully in his sleeping bag while Veemon was curled up in the saddle, snoring.

"Wait until you see it, Katara. The Air Temple is one of the most beautiful places in the world." Aang said as he tightened the reigns on Appa's horns.

"Aang, I know you're excited, but it's been 100 years since you've been home." Katara said as she turned around from her place in the saddle.

She and Daisuke had been loading the supplies into the saddle.

"That's why I'm so excited." Aang smiled.

"It's just that, a lot can change in all that time." the Waterbender said.

"I know, but I need to see it for myself." Aang said.

"Well, I can't wait. My grandparents used to tell me stories about them. I always wanted to see one for myself." Daisuke smiled excitedly.

Nodding at the girl, the Airbender jumped down from his bison's head.

"Wake up, Sokka. Air Temple, here we come!" Aang said to the snoring teenager.

"Ugh, sleep now, temple later." Sokka groaned as he turned onto his side.

Aang frowned at this before he gained a mischivous look on his face.

He picked up a stick and started to lightly run in along Sokka's body while Katara and Daisuke watched from the saddle.

"Sokka, wake up! There's a prickle snake in your sleeping bag!" Aang called.

Sokka's eyes shot open as he jumped to his feet, body still wrapped up in his sleeping bag.

"AHHH! Get it off, get it off!" he yelled as he started hopping away.

He yelled again as he tripped over a rock making the two girls giggle at him while Veemon yawned as he woke up, rubbing at his eyes.

"Great, you're awake. Now let's go." Aang smiled while Sokka glared at the ground.

"Where we going?" Veemon asked sleepily.

Katara and Daisuke then turned to look at the dragon; the Waterbender grinning at the Firebender who sighed.

(Later on...)

Appa soared through the air while Aang and Katara sat on his head, and Sokka was sitting in the saddle with Daisuke and Veemon.

Sokka's stomach then growled while Veemon was moaning in hunger.

"Hey, stomach, be quiet, all right? I'm trying to find us some food." Sokka frowned.

"Food? Where?" Veemon perked his head up.

The tanned boy was looking through his bag for some food to eat, but when he shook the bag, only crumbs fell into his hand.

"Hey, who ate all my blubbered seal jerky?" Sokka asked.

"Oh, that was food? I used it to start the camp fire last night. Sorry." Aang smiled nervously.

"You burned our food?!" Veemon yelped in horror and then fainted in hunger.

"You what? Aw, no wonder the flames smelled so good." Sokka whined.

Appa then flew higher into the air, moving through the clouds and fog towards a line-up of tall pointed mountains.

"The petola mountain range! We're almost there." Aang exclaimed.

"Aang, before we get to the temple, I want to talk to you about the Airbenders." Katara said sadly.

"What about 'em?" Aang asked.

"Well, I just want you to be prepared for what you might see. The Fire Nation is ruthless. They killed my mother and they could've done the same to your people." Katara told him.

Aang appeared to be sad by her words while Daisuke stared down at the ground below her as her hand grabbed at her pendant.

"Just because no one has seen an Airbender, doesn't mean the Fire Nation killed them all. They probably escaped." Aang said positively.

"I know it's hard to accept." Katara placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You don't understand, Katara. The only way to get to an Air Temple is on a flying bison. And I doubt the Fire Nation have any flying bison. Right, Appa?" Aang pet his bison's head.

Appa growled softly at his partner's words.

"Didn't they used to have dragons?" Sokka asked as he stared down at Veemon who was resting in his human's lap.

"Yeah, that was before the royal family hunted them down to extinction. I don't think all Firebenders are evil, but the royal family is a piece of work." Daisuke frowned as she crossed her arms.

Sozin was from the royal family and his greedy ambition for power led him to attack the Air Nomads so that he could sever the Avatar cycle and take over everything.

It was because of him that the Fire Nation were all given a bad reputation and were now hated by the Earth and Water Nations.

Just then, Appa flew upwards making everyone cling to the horns or saddle to keep themselves from falling off due to the pressure of the wind blowing around them.

Soon, the bison broke through the clouds and was flying towards the top of the mountains where the large temple was located.

"There it is. The Southern Air Temple." Aang smiled.

"Aang, it's amazing!" Katara gasped.

"Whoa!" Daisuke smiled in awe at the ancient building that was built into the mountain.

"We're home, buddy. We're home." Aang smiled softly.

As soon as Appa landed, everyone dismounted the bison and looked around the yard they were in.

"So where do I get something to eat?" Sokka asked.

"Yeah, I'm famished." Veemon pouted.

"You're lucky enough to be one of the first outsiders to ever visit an Airbender temple and all you can think about is food?" Katara turned to the duo in disbelief.

"I'm just a simple guy with simple needs." Sokka said.

"And I need food to digivolve!" Veemon told her.

Rolling her eyes at her partner, Daisuke pulled him onto her back and he clung to her shoulders as she raced off after the excited Airbender.

"So that's where my friends and I used to play airball." Aang pointed to a row of wooden poles and and each side had a backboard.

"And over there is where the sky bison used to sleep." the boy then pointed to a large animal pen that was outside.

The boy then sighed sadly as he looked around the area.

"What's wrong?" Katara asked him.

"This place used to be filled with monks, and lemurs and bisons. Now there's just a bunch of weeds. I can't believe how much things have changed." Aang said.

"Don't give up hope, Aang. I mean, I know a few Airbenders in my time. I bet the Airbenders in this time are just in hiding." Daisuke smiled as she placed a hand on the boy's bald head.

This news made the 12 year old smile up at the Firebender, feeling a bit hopeful at that news.

Sokka and Katara shared a look at this, still unsure if there were any Airbenders around at all.

"So, uh, this airball game. How do you play?" Sokka asked as he walked over.

Aang then smiled at his friends as he led them over to the court while Katara, Daisuke and Sokka shed off their coats and gloves.

Aang and Sokka both climbed up onto the poles, the younger boy holding the ball while Sokka got ready to block.

Katara, Daisuke and Veemon stood back to watch the game play out.

Using his Airbending to move the ball around his body, Aang then tossed the ball into the air making Sokka look up.

When the ball came down, Aang kicked the ball with a wave of wind that sent the ball rushing towards Sokka as it hit the poles and eventually hit the teenager in the stomach and sent him flying through the backboard and he landed in the snow.

"Aang 7; Sokka 0!" Aang laughed cheerfully.

"Making him feel better is putting me through a world of hurt." Sokka whined.

"Aw, stop complaining." Veemon grinned.

Suddenly, Sokka found an old red helmet with a white mask lying under a hill and crawled towards it in shock.

"Guys, check this out." he called softly as Katara, Daisuke and Veemon walked over.

"Fire Nation." Katara stated.

"That's not good." Daisuke narrowed her eyes.

"We should tell him." Sokka said.

"Aang! There's something you need to see!" Katara turned and called to the boy.

Aang was running over towards his friends, laughing gleefully as he used his Airbending to hover the ball.

"Okay." Aang said as he ran over.

Not wanting to ruin the happy look the boy had, Katara then Bended the snow over the helmet and on top of Sokka, Daisuke and Veemon.

"What is it?" Aang asked as he stood at the Waterbender's side.

Veemon and Sokka shook the snow off while Daisuke took in a deep breath and heated up her body to melt the snow off and dry her clothing.

"Uh, just a new Waterbending move I learned." Katara folded her hands behind her back innocently.

"Nice one, but enough practising. We have a whole temple to see." Aang said as he walked off.

"You know, you can't protect him forever." Sokka stood up.

Katara sadly walked off after the younger boy.

"There's no easy way to do this." Daisuke sighed as she followed the other girl while the warrior in training and dragon chased after her.

Grabbing their coats, they followed the hyper 12 year old further into the temple where the prayer field was located.

"Katara, Firebenders were here. You can't pretend they weren't." Sokka crossed his arms.

"I can for Aang's sake. If he finds out that the Fire Nation invaded his home, he'll be devistated." Katara told him.

"But won't it be worst if we don't tell him and he finds out some other way?" Veemon asked.

"Hey, guys! I want you to meet somebody." Aang called as he stood in front of the statue of an old Airbender who had a strange moustach and a pendant with the symbol for the Air Nomads engraved on it.

"Who's that?" Sokka asked.

"Monk Gyatso; the greatest Airbender in the world. He taught me everything I know." Aang said as he then bowed his head to the statue.

"You must miss him." Katara placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah." Aang said as he walked up the steps that were behind Gyatso's statue.

"Where are you going?" Katara asked.

"The Air Temple Sactuary. There's someone I'm ready to meet." Aang said as he continued walking inside.

The three humans and teh dragon shared confused looks as they then followed their friend inside of the temple.

Walking further inside down a hallway, they came to a stop in front of a massive wooden door that had three air spirals and two horns curving around the spirals.

"But Aang, no one could have survived in there for a hundred years." Katara stated.

"It's not impossible. I survived in the iceberg for that long." Aang reminded.

"He has a point." Daisuke shrugged with a hand on her hip.

"Katara, whoever's in there might help me figure out this Avatar thing." Aang smiled at the girls.

"And whoever's in there might have a medley of delicious, cured meat." Sokka rubbed his hands together happily.

"Sokka, you know Air Nomads are vegan, right?" Daisuke asked.

"Is that why your dad doesn't eat meat?" Veemon asked since he knew Tamaki Motomiya was part Air Nomad on his mother's side.

"No meat?! How do you people live?" Sokka groaned making Daisuke and Katara roll their eyes.

"So, how do you open the door? Is there a key or something?" the Firebender asked.

"The key, Daisuke, is Airbending." Aang said.

Standing back, everyone watched as Aang took in a deep breath and pushed a wave of air into the horns.

The air then made the spirals turn and release the music as the door then slowly creaked open revealing the large dark room to the group.

"Hello? Anyone home?" Aang called as he ventured inside.

Daisuke, Katara, Veemon and Sokka then followed him into the darkness, trying to see what was inside the room.

The light from the door shone on what appeared to be statues of various men and women.

"Statues? That's it?" Sokka asked.

"Where's the food?" Veemon exclaimed with a pout.

"Who are all these people?" Katara asked.

"I'm not sure, but it feels like I know them somehow. Look, that one's an Airbender." Aang said as he pointed to a man with a tiny moustach and an arrow on his bald head.

"And this one's a Waterbender." Katara pointed to a man who wore a fur coat that's hood appeared to be a wolf's head.

"And this one is a Firebender." Daisuke exclaimed as he ran over to the statue of an old man wearing a robe with long hair and a beard.

"They're lined up in a pattern. Air, water, earth and fire." Katara counted.

"That's the Avatar cycle." Aang smiled.

"Of course. They're Avatars. All these people were yoru past lives, Aang." Katara said.

"Wow. They're so many." Aang said as he walked around.

"Past lives? Katara, you really believe in that suff?" Sokka asked.

"To be honest, I've heard weirder things." Veemon said.

"It's true. When the Avatar dies, he's reincarnated intot he next nation in the cycle." Katara told her brother.

"I wonder who the first Avatar was. No one knows if they were a guy or a girl, or even what nation they came from." Daisuke mused as Aang came up to her side.

He was staring at the statue the girl had pointed out with a strange look on his face.

"Aang?" Daisuke asked as she looked at the boy in worry.

The others then noticed how the boy was behaving as he stared into Roku's eyes and walked over to him when he didn't respond to the 13 year old's voice.

"Aang, snap out of it." Katara grabbed his shoulders and shook him.

"Huh?" he asked as he was taken out of his trance.

"Who is that?" Katara asked.

"That's Avatar Roku, the Avatar before me." Aang informed.

"You were a Firebender? No wonder I didn't trust you when we first met." Sokka mused.

"I figured it was because you're paranoid." Daisuke muttered.

"There's no writing. How do you know his name?" Veemon asked.

"I'm not sure. I just know somehow." Aang said while everyone stared at him.

"You just couldn't get any weirder." Sokka commented as he frowned at the shorter boy with his arms crossed.

A strange noise was then heard making the group jump in surprise and turn towards the door to see a shadow on the ground.

Everyone quickly hid behind the statues as they saw the shadow walking inside the room.

"Firebender. Nobody make a sound." Sokka whispered.

"You're making a sound!" Katara whispered back making the two boys, the Digidestined and the dragon shush her which made the brunette frown.

They all then remained silent and tense as they watched the horned shadow move towards them.

"That Firebender won't know what hit him." Sokka whispered as he pulled out his club.

As the shadow got closer, everyone turned to see that it wasn't a Firebender, but it was a lemur with large rabbit ears and jade colored eyes.

The lemur was white with brown stripes and had a brown face with a brown tail.

It purred as it kneeled to the ground, staring at the humans and dragon with innocent eyes.

"Cute!" Daisuke squealed.

"Lemur!" Aang exclaimed.

"Dinner!" Sokka drooled.

"Don't listen to him. You're gonna be my new pet." Aang smiled.

"Not if I get him first!" Sokka said as he ran at the lemur with Aang.

Startled, the lemur cried out as it started running off away from the two crazed boys while the girls and dragon watched them go.

"Wait, come back!" Aang called.

"I wanna eat you!" Sokka called.

"Yeah, that's gonna make him come back." Daisuke quipped.

Katara giggled as she looked at the statues that were all around her while Veemon searched the area around him.

"So, do you think there's a kitchen here? Possibly filled with chocolate?" Veemon gave the puppy dog look.

This made the girls roll their eyes at the dragon in amusement at the adorable look he was using on them.

Looking into Roku's eyes, Daisuke was stunned to see them glowing a pale blue color which made her gasp.

Veemon and Katara were both shocked to see the eyes of all the statues started to glow as well, lighting up the dark room.

"Aang!" Katara gasped as he ran out of the room.

Daisuke was hot on her heels while Veemon jumped onto her back as the girl ran off with her friend down the hallway.

They both made it outside to see a large gust of wind and followed it to see Aang was inside of an orb of air in the middle of debris.

"Is he...in the Avatar State?" Daisuke asked with wide eyes.

Finding Sokka hiding behind a broken wall, the girls and dragon walked over to him as the wind blew around them.

"What happened?" Katara called over the wind.

"He found out Firebenders killed Gyatso." Sokka informed.

"Oh no. It's his Avatar spirit. He must have triggered it. I'm gonna try and calm him down." Katara said as she walked forward.

"Well, do it, before he blows us off the mountain!" Sokka started to slip.

Daisuke grabbed his hand and pulled him down beside her as she crouched down, trying to keep herself and Sokka grounded so they wouldn't be blown away.

Katara struggled to walk through the power wind while Aang lifted into the air, his eyes and tattooes glowing.

"This really isn't good." Daisuke said as she held Veemon to her chest as everyone clung to the boulders and broken walls.

"Aang, I know you're upset. And I know how hard it is to lose the people you love. I went through the same thing when I lost my mom. Monk Gyatso and the other Airbenders may be gone, but you still have a family. Sokka, Daisuke, Veemon and I. We're your family now." Katara said.

Her words seem to have an effect on Aang as he slowly drifted to the ground and the winds calmed.

Just as his feet hit the ground, the winds faded away and his friends walked over to him smiling.

"Katara, Daisuke, Veemon and I aren't gonna let anything happen to you. Promise." Sokka said.

"We're here for you. No matter what." Daisuke assured him.

Katara then took Aang's hand making his marks and eyes return to normal and he stumbled into the girl's arm, feeling drained of energy.

"I'm sorry." Aang said sadly as the Waterbender held him.

"It's okay. It wasn't your fault." Katara said.

"But you were if the Firebenders found this temple, that means they found the other ones too. I really am the last Airbender." Aang said softly as Katara hugged him.

"For now." Daisuke smiled tenderly.

This made everyone look over at her and she simply shrugged at them.

(Afterwards...)

Aang was staring at Roku's statue once again after everyone had packed up their bags for the journey.

Daisuke and Katara walked inside the room to speak with the young Avatar.

"Everything's packed. You ready to go?" Katara asked him.

"How is Roku supposed to help me if I can't talk to him?" Aang asked.

"Who knows?" Daisuke shrugged.

"Maybe you'll find a way." Katara said.

Hearing the strange sound once again, the trio turned to find the lemur was standing behind them with an armful of different fruits.

He hopped over to where Sokka and Veemon were standing and dropped the fruits in front of them before he ran over to the mahogany haired girl, chattering to be picked up by her.

Sokka and Veemon dropped to their rears and started munching on the food they were given with gusto.

"Looks like you made a new friend, Sokka, Veemon." Aang commented.

"Can't talk. Must eat." Sokka said through a mouthful of food.

"Oh, so good." Veemon gave a wide smile.

Daisuke giggled as she picked up the lemur who cuddled into her arms, comforted by the heat she had radiating from her body.

"Hey little guy." Aang greeted as he leaned over to smile at the lemur.

"He's just so cute." Daisuke cooed as she tickled the lemur's chin making him pur.

Looking at Aang, she then set the lemur on his head making the boy smile at Daisuke.

The sun was starting to set as the group left the temple and walked over to where Appa had been resting and waiting on them.

"You, me and Appa. We're all that's left of this place. We have to stick together." Aang said to Appa and the lemur.

Looking over to his friends, Aang smiled at them as he saw them packing the bags with fruit.

"Katara, Daisuke, Veemon, Sokka; say hello to the newest member of our family." Aang said as he walked over to them with the lemur perched on his arm.

"What are you gonna name him?" Veemon asked.

The lemur then jumped at Sokka and swiped the peach out of his hand before the boy could take a bite and the lemur then jumped back over to Aang, sitting on his arm as he started to munch on the fruit.

"Momo." Aang said.

Sokka looked appauled by having his snack stolen right out of his hands while Daisuke smirked at the irony of the name Aang chose for the peach stealing lemur.

Everyone then laughed at what had just happened while Sokka scowled, then the group climbed into the saddle and stared at the temple as the bison took off into the sky as twilight fell.

To be continued...


	5. The Kyoshi Warriors

"Kyoshi Island"

**I forgot to mention this before, but Daisuke is voiced by Lacey Chabert because she has a young sounding voice and has played the roles of spunky characters such as Aleu from Balto 2, young Vitani in Lion King 2, Eliza in the Wild Thornberrys, Tanya in An American Tail, young Anya in Anastasia and various others. Anyway, back on topic, Suki's theme is "Lesson Number One" because she is the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors and is trying to teach Sokka about their ways of the warrior.**

For the past two days Aang had Appa flying all over the place and was beginnging to annoy Sokka, Katara, Veemon and Daisuke.

Currently, Katara was sewing a hole that was made in Sokka's pants because he had fallen and ripped them.

Daisuke was meditating, focusing on her breathing exercises to try and control her Firebending since she knew she would need to start her training.

She had only been able to creat flame once in her life when she was a little girl, but now with all the years of suppression and no teacher to help her, she could only heat up her body.

Fire came from deep within the body and the breath which was why she was meditating to better control it.

"You have no idea where you're going, do you?" Sokka asked suddenly.

"Well, I know it's near water." Aang glanced over his shoulder at his friends.

Sokka and Veemon then glanced at the ocean below them.

"When, then I guess we're there already." Veemon commented dryly, but the boy ignored the remark and the expression Sokka wore.

"Momo, marbles please." Aang requested the lemur.

Momo climbed inside the Airbender's shirt and crawled back out with a couple of marbles in his paw and sat on Aang's shoulder as he handed him the marbles.

"Hey Katara, check out this Airbending trick." he called to the Waterbender.

Opening an eye to look over at the boy, Daisuke was amused to see the marbles in his hands were levitating above his hand and were spinning around in a circle rapidly.

Aang then gave a wide grin over to Katara, but the girl was more occupied with her sewing and seemed to be very content with it.

"That's great, Aang." Katara said without looking.

The smile on Aang's face vanished as the marbles stopped their movement.

"You didn't even look." he told her.

"That's great!" Katara gave a large enthused smile at the boy.

Daisuke snorted at that, but she tried to pass it of as a cough as she lifted her fist to her mouth.

"But I'm not doing it now." Aang said looking crestfallen.

"Stop bugging her, Airhead. You need to give girls space when they do their sewing." Sokka gave a dismissive wave of his hand.

This made Daisuke's eyes snap open and she turned a deadly glare over to the teenager while Veemon flinched back.

"What is that supposed to mean?" the Firebender asked.

"Yeah, what does me being a girl have to do with sewing?" the Waterbender asked with an angered tone.

Veemon was considering jumping out of the saddle since he was sure falling through the sky would be safer than being around two enraged teenage girls.

"Simple; girls are better at fixing pants than guys and guys are better at hunting and fighting and stuff like that. It's just the natural order of things." Sokka said.

Veemon slapped his hand over his face in disbelief at the words that had just come out of the 15 year old's mouth.

"You stupid, stupid boy." the Digimon muttered as he shook his head.

Daisuke and Katara both glared heatedly at the boy, then suddenly the turquoise eyed girl's face brightened.

"All done with your pants and look what a great job I did!" Katara exclaimed as she threw the blue pants in her brother's face.

He yelped as he pulled the pants away from his face and saw that the large hole was still there.

"Wait, I was just kidding! I can't wear these! Katara, please? Daisuke?" Sokka begged as he turned to the mahogany haired girl.

"You just insulted my gender. Do you really want me to 'fix' your pants?" Daisuke asked as steam hissed out of her mouth.

The young warrior held his pants to his body protectively.

"You know what? These are fine!" he forced a nervous smile.

"Relax, Sokka. Where we're going, you won't need pants." Aang said as he jerked Appa's reigns to the right.

"Did-Did you suddenly go insane?" Veemon asked as the others gave the Avatar confused looks.

(Later...)

Appa flew towards an island and landed on the beach and Aang jumped off happily while the others followed reluctantly.

"We just made a pit stop yesterday. Shouldn't we get a little more flying done before we camp out?" Sokka asked.

"He's right. At this rate, we won't get to the North Pole until spring." Katara said as she looked over at the Airbender.

"But Appa's tired already. Aren't you, boy?" Aang smiled at his partner who simply snorted.

"I said; aren't you, boy?" Aang nudged the bison.

Appa then took the hint and opened his mouth to give a big yawn making Veemon snicker while Aang gave the others an 'I told you so' look.

"Yeah, that's real convincing. Still, hard to argue with a ten-ton flying monster." Sokka said as he shared a look with his sister and Daisuke.

Daisuke shook her head at that as she then looked over at Aang as she saw the boy running over to the water.

"What are you doing, Aang?" the Firebender called to the boy.

"Look!" Aang pointed to the water.

A giant yellow and red koi fish then jumped out of the water making everyone stare in awe at the sight.

"That's why we're here; elephant koi. I'm gonna ride 'em. Katara, you gotta watch me." Aang said as he started to undress.

"We came here just so he could show off to a girl?" Veemon muttered in disbelief.

He never understood why human boys did such stupid things just to impress a human girl.

Aang, who was only in his brown underwear, then jumped into the water, but jumped up in shock.

"Cold!" he screamed.

Daisuke and Katara looked over at Sokka who shrugged and lifted a hand to his head and started to twirl one of his fingers around, stating the boy was crazy.

They then looked back at the ocean to see Aang had gotten on the back of one of the elephant koi and was holding onto its fin as he rode it.

"Whoo!" Katara cheered the grinning boy on as he waved to them.

"Show off." Veemon smirked as Momo was bouncing beside him excitedly.

"He looks pretty good out there." Katara commented to her brother and friend.

"Yeah, I guess." Daisuke said to her.

"Are you kidding? The fish is doing all the work." Sokka stated.

Appa then walked off to the side around a rock arrangment and sniffed at the gooey substance dripping off the tree.

He then licked of the sweet smelling sap, enjoying the taste.

"Um, what's Appa doing?" Veemon asked making the girls look over and gasp as they saw the bison bitting the tree.

"Appa, don't eat the tree!" Daisuke scolded as she ran over.

"Spit that out of your mouth!" Katara called as she followed the other girl.

Aang then smiled over at his friends, but was upset to find Katara wasn't watching him and was running around the corner of the rock formation with Daisuke.

Sokka was looking bored while Momo was jumping up and down excitedly and Veemon simply waved at the boy.

"Ah, man." Aang pouted sadly as he continued riding the elephant koi.

Sokka's eyes then grew wide as he spotted a large shadow under the water chasing after the elephant koi that Aang was riding.

"There's something in the water!" Sokka cried making Daisuke and Katara rush over to the shore.

"What's wrong?" Katara asked.

"Aang's in trouble." Sokka told them.

"Aang! Behind you!" Daisuke yelled loudly.

One of the elephant koi was then dragged under the water by the shadow making everyone worry.

"Get out of there!" Katara yelled.

"Turn around!" Veemon screamed.

"Come back here, Aang!" Sokka shouted.

Turning his head back to the shore, Aang saw everyone yelling at him and waving which made him smile thinking they were cheering for him.

Suddenly, the koi he was riding was lurched backwards making the boy fly off of the fish and landed in the water.

Then a fin broke the surface of the water making everyone cry out in fear as Aang turned to look at the fin that didn't belong to one of the koi.

Screaming, he leapt up and used his Airbending to run across the water to escape from the creature that gave chase.

Sokka cried out as the boy crashed into him and was knocked back into a tree.

The girls and Digimon then ran over to the boys to check on them; Sokka being sprawled out in the snow while Aang was quickly pulling on his clothing.

"What was that thing?" Veemon asked as Daisuke offered a hand to Sokka who accepted it and allowed the girl to pull him to his feet.

"I don't know." Aang said.

"Well, let's not stick around to find out." Sokka said as she dusted his hands off.

"Time to hit the road." he said.

Suddenly, a group of people ambushed them, everyone only seeing flashes of green as they had blindfolds tied around their heads and covering their eyes and their arms were tied behind their backs.

The group was then thrown to the ground, quickly defeated by the ones who ambused them; Momo being thrown into a burlap sack.

"Or we could stay a while." Sokka quipped.

(Later on...)

They were then hauled off towards a village and were tied to what felt like a pole and they could hear footsteps approaching them from all over.

"You three have some explaining to do." an old man spoke.

"And if you don't answer our questions, we're throwing you back to the Unagi." a teenage female threatened.

"Show yourselves, cowards!" Sokka demanded.

The groups' blindfolds were then pulled away from their eyes and they saw a group of young women dressed in green robes with black armour and gold headbands.

They were wearing white face paint, red lipstick and had red eyeshadow that was outlined in black.

Daisuke's eyes grew wide in surprise when she recognized the uniforms.

"The Kyoshi warriors." she whispered in awe.

"Who are you? Where are the men who ambused us?" Sokka asked.

"There were no men. We ambushed you. Now tell us, who are you and what are you doing here?" a girl with short auburn colored hair and gray eyes demanded.

"Wait a second. There's no way a bunch of girls took us down." Sokka snarked.

Daisuke and the leader of the Kyoshi warriors both gave the 15 year old dark looks.

The leader grabbed Sokka by the collar of his shirt making him flinch.

"A bunch of girls, huh? The Unagi's going to eat well tonight." the leader glared.

"No, don't hurt him! He didn't mean it. My brother's just an idiot sometimes." Katara tried to defend her brother.

"When are human boys never idiots?" Veemon muttered.

The leader and Sokka simply stared at each other, both annoyed.

"It's my fault. I'm sorry we came here. I wanted to ride the elephant koi." Aang spoke up.

"How do we know you're not Fire Nation spies? Kyoshi stayed out of the war so far and we intend to keep it that way." the village leader pointed at the group accusingly.

"This island is named for Kyoshi? I know Kyoshi!" Aang smiled excitedly.

"How could you possibly know her? Avatar Kyoshi was born here 400 years ago. She's been dead for centuries." the man scoffed.

On top of the pole was an old carving of Kyoshi, the Avatar from the Earth Nation.

The paint was chipping off and it appeared to be faded.

"I know her because I'm the Avatar." Aang announced.

The leader of the warriors appeared to be angered at this accusation while the village leader was stunned.

"That's impossible! The last Avatar was an Airbender who disappeared a hundred years ago." the girl snapped.

"That's me." Aang grinned.

"Throw the imposter to the Unagi." the old man ordered.

"You really are bad when it comes to calming angry crowds." Daisuke stated to Aang as the warriors took out their fans that were made out of bronze metal.

"Aang, do some Airbending." Katara muttered as she watched the warriors approach them.

Aang then used his Airbending to propel himself upwards, the force snapping the ropes and flipped over the statue and floated to the ground.

The entire village stared at the young Avatar in shock and awe as they started murmuring to each other over what they had witnessed.

"It's true. You are the Avatar." the old man said in amazement.

"Now, check this out." Aang smirked as he pulled out his marbles.

He then started to make the marbles spin around above his hand rapidly as he gave a wide grin to the villagers.

The villagers then cheered at this, one man yelling loudly and started to foam at the mouth before promptly passing out.

(The next day...)

"All right, dessert for breakfast!" Aang cheered as he stuffed a pastry in his mouth.

The group were sitting in one of the huts and had a table filled with desserts laid out for them to eat.

Behind them was a window and they could see the villagers cleaning the statue of Kyoshi and were putting new coats of paint on it.

"These people sure know how to treat an Avatar." Aang said.

"Veemon, slow down." Daisuke said as she watched the dragon stuff the food in her mouth.

His cheeks were puffed out like a chipmunk's as he turned to his partner and gave her a smile.

Rolling her eyes at him, Daisuke then started eating a cupcake that was filled with fresh blueberries.

"Katara, you gotta try these." Aang held out a pastry to the girl.

"Well, maybe just a bite." Katara mused.

Accepting the treat, the brunette took a bite out of the pastry and smiled at the taste.

"Sokka, what's your problem? Eat." Aang said as he looked over at the pouting teenager.

He was sitting off to the side, his arms crossed as he stared at the wall.

"Not hungry." Sokka scowled.

"But you're always hungry." Aang pointed out.

"He's just upset because a bunch of girls kicked his butt yesterday." Katara explained.

"I just love the irony of this. You were bagging on girls not being warriors and you wound up getting your butt kicked by them a few minutes later. Classic." Daisuke smirked.

"They snuck up on me." Sokka protested as he turned to the girls.

"Right." Katara drawled as she shared a look with Daisuke.

"And then they kicked your butt." Daisuke chirped making Katara smirk while Veemon snickered.

"Sneak attacks don't count! Tie me up with a rope. I'll show them a thing or two." Sokka grumbled as he stormed away.

He then walked back over to the table and grabbed some of the pastries and shoved them in his mouth as he walked off.

"I'm not scared of any girls. Who do they think they are anyway? Mm, this is tasty." he said as he took a bite of the pastry.

"What's he so angry about? It's great here. They're giving us the royal treatment." Aang said as he looked at the girls and Digimon.

"Hey, don't get too comfortable. It's risky for us to stay in one place for very long." Katara advised.

"I'm sure we'll be fine. Besides, did you see how happy I'm making this town? They're even cleaning off the statue in my honor." Aang smiled as he grabbed another pastry.

"Well, it's nice to see you excited about being the Avatar. I just hope it doesn't all go to your head." Katara commented.

"Katara's right, Aang. All this worship and attention could be bad for you if ya let it get to your head." Daisuke pointed out.

"Come on, you two know me better than that. I'm just a simple monk." Aang said as he stood up and leaned against the window.

Hearing shrieking and giggling, the boy looked down to see a group of girls around his age looking up at him with adoration.

He blushed at the attention and gave a large grin while Katara crossed her arms and blew a raspberry.

Daisuke and Veemon simply shared a blank look.

"This won't end well." Veemon shrugged as he licked crumbs off his fingers.

Standing up, the Firebender stretched out and smiled in satisfaction when her stiff muscles popped.

"Come on, Veemon, let's go check the village out." she smiled down at her partner.

"Okay." Veemon said as he grabbed a cupcake and followed the girl out of the hut.

They walked out into the village and smiled at the people who waved at them in greeting.

As Daisuke looked around at the people, she frowned when she took in their clothing.

"What's wrong, Daisuke?" Veemon asked the girl.

"It's weird. These guys are from the Earth Nation, but they're wearing blue. Whatever. Come on, let's go see what they do for fun around here." the girl said.

"Doesn't look like they do much." Veemon observed.

Everyone was either doing chores or were working at the food stands that were set up in the village.

While the duo walked around the village, they saw Aang running away from the girls that were chasing after him making the duo of Miracles roll their eyes.

"Okay, see, this is why boys don't respect girls." Daisuke pointed at the shrieking fan girls.

Veemon chuckled at this as he then looked off to the side and his scarlet eyes landed on a certain Water Tribe boy walking their way.

"Sokka!" Veemon called waving his arm at the boy.

Hearing the dragon's voice, Sokka looked over to where the duo of Miracles were and he walked over to them.

"Hey." he greeted sounding upset.

"What's up with you?" Daisuke asked.

"I went to the dojo where Suki and the other Kyoshi warriors were to fight them and Suki took me out with only one move." Sokka scowled.

"Please don't tell me you're complaining about girls beating you up." Veemon frowned.

"I just don't get how they can do it. It's biologically not possible." Sokka pouted as he crossed his arms.

Daisuke frowned at him and lifted a hand up, whacking him over the head.

"Ouch!" he whined as he held his head.

"Sokka, do you have any idea what it's like for someone to tell you you're weak and can't do anything? That you have something important you want to do, but someone was there to drag you down?" she asked.

He looked at her in surprise from the question.

"Well...yeah." he answered hesitantly.

"Well, that's what I went through too. I wanted to play sports with the boys, but they pushed me around and beat me up. They said that just because I'm a girl, it means I can never be as strong or as fast as a boy. I hated it! It's not fair for everyone to judge us just because of our gender. It hurts to be told those things. But you know what? I kept working hard to prove everyone wrong and I did." Daisuke told him.

Realization then entered Sokka's eyes as he stared at the ground sadly.

Turning around, he then walked off to where the dojo was located.

"Hey, where are ya going?" Veemon called.

"To appologize to Suki!" he called.

Daisuke then smiled at this as she placed her hands on her hips.

"I guess I got through to him." she mused.

"I guess so." Veemon chirped as he looked up at his human.

She had a way with dealing with stubborn boys like and he was just thankful that she didn't have to get violent to do it.

"Hey, Daisuke! Veemon!" someone called making the duo turn around and saw Katara by one of the fruit stands waving at them.

"Hey, Katara." Daisuke greeted as she and Veemon walked over to the Waterbender who smiled at them.

"What's up?" the blue dragon asked.

"Can you two help me pack up for the trip?" Katara asked.

"Yeah, sure." Daisuke nodded as she took the waterskin from the girl to have it refilled with water.

Veemon took a bag that had nuts in it and carried it as the trio walked over to the next stand and looked over the fruit and vegetables that were laid out.

Suddenly, Aang walked over to them and tapped Katara's shoulder making the girl turn to him and smiled when she saw he was alone.

"Oh good. Could you help me carry this back to the room? It's a little heavy." Katara said as she held up the jug filled with food.

Daisuke tied the waterskin filled with water to her waist and was currently looking over the apples for any bruises as she held a basket.

"Actually, I can't right now." Aang held his hands up appologetically.

"What do you mean you can't?" Katara asked looking confused.

"I promised the girls I'd give them a ride on Appa. Why don't you, Daisuke and Veemon come with us? It'll be fun." Aang offered.

"Watching you show off for a bunch of girls does not sound like fun. Right, guys?" Katara looked at the duo of Miracles for their input.

"Yep." Daisuke nodded.

"What she said." Veemon nodded.

Both had taken a few steps backwards since they didn't want to be involved in the mess they were sure that was going to happen.

"Well, neither does carrying your basket." Aang retorted to Katara when he saw that he wasn't getting help from the Digidestined and Digimon.

"It's not my basket. These supplies are for our trip. I told you we have to leave Kyoshi soon." Katara snapped.

"I don't wanna leave Kyoshi yet. I can't put my finger on it but there's something I really like about this place." Aang protested.

Giggling was then heard making the quartet look over to see the gaggle of girls staring at the Airbender.

"What's taking you so long, Aangy?" one of the girls asked impatiently.

"Aangy?" Katara, Daisuke and Veemon repeated in disgust.

"Just a second, Koko!" Aang called back to the group.

"Simple monk, huh? I thought you promised us this Avatar stuff wouldn't go to your head." Katara frowned.

"It didn't. You know what I think? You just don't want to come because you're jealous." Aang smirked smugly.

Daisuke's eyes went wide in shock as she dropped the basket she was holding while Veemon whined in disbelief.

They both knew that this was going to end badly after those words came out of the boy's mouth.

"Jealous?! Of what?" Katara asked indignantly.

"Jealous we're having so much fun without you." Aang answered.

Behind the angered Waterbender, he saw Daisuke and Veemon waving their arms around and shaking their heads as they mouthed the word 'No' at him.

"That's rediculous." Katara scowled as she continued filling the jug with fruit and vegetables.

"It is a little rediculous, but I understand." Aang smiled.

Daisuke then mouthed the words 'Shut up!' as she looked at him in annoyance and held her hands up in exasperation while Veemon slapped his hand over his face in defeat.

"Ugh!" Katara growled as she hefted the jug into her arms carefully and started storming off.

"Come on Daisuke, Veemon." she called to her friends.

Groaning, Daisuke then picked up her basket and followed after the girl along with Veemon.

"Why are human boys so stupid?" the dragon shook his head.

"Because they are." Daisuke retorted.

"You got that right." Katara huffed.

(An hour later...)

Daisuke was sitting on the beach enjoying the cool air and the salty sea spray of the ocean while Veemon was sunbathing on a rock.

Sighing, the girl tilted her head back so that her face was being warmed by the sun and it made her smile softly at the feeling.

She always felt at peace when she was out in the sunlight and her body always felt warmer than usual; she loved it.

"Mm, now this is great." she sighed as she soaked up the sunlight.

"Yeah. Really relaxing." Veemon yawned with a sleepy smile.

Looking over to his human, he saw that she seemed to almost be glowing in the light.

Her mahogany hair was shining red while her tanned skin looked almost golden from the sunlight and her pendant was sparkling.

It truly was a mystical sight.

Screaming was then heard making the duo of Miracles jump at the sound and they looked over to see the Unagi.

It was a large black sea dragon with light purple fins on its back, yellow markings on the neck, toxic green eyes and had the whiskers of a catfish.

In the water trying to swim away from the Unagi was Aang!

"Oh no, Aang!" Daisuke gasped as she jumped up from the beach.

"Daisuke, wait!" Veemon called as he chased after her.

Aang was clinging to the Unagi's whiskers as the creature tried to throw him off and Katara was on the beach watching.

"Hang on, Aang!" Katara called out, but gasped in horror when the sea dragon threw the boy into the water, near the shore.

"Aang!" Katara called as she ran into the water.

The Unagi then dove into the water and started swimming over to where the unconcious boy was lying while Katara tried to quickly swim over to her friend.

Just as Katara got to Aang and pulled him into her arms, the Unagi was there and was about to attack, but was stopped when Ex-Veemon arrived and punched the sea dragon in the face.

Crying out in shock from the sudden attack, the Unagi fell into the water while Katara used this distraction to force the waves to propel her and Aang back to the beach where Daisuke was waiting.

Daisuke then helped Katara carry Aang behind the rocks to hide as the Unagi rose from the ocean and blasted water at Ex-Veemon who easily eavded the blasts.

"Okay, that's rude. At least say 'Excuse me'." Ex-Veemon said as he then blasted his V Laser at the creature's mouth making it cry out in pain.

The Unagi then drifted back into the water to escape while Ex-Veemon flew over to where the humans were hidding.

"That was a close one." Daisuke sighed as the Champion landed behind her.

Both girls peeked out over the rocks and gasped when they saw a familiar war ship sailing to the island.

"Zuko!" Katara gasped.

"Things just got worse." Ex-Veemon commented.

"Daisuke, you need to go warn the village!" Katara told the girl.

"Okay. You two stay hidden though." Daisuke said as she jumped on Ex-Veemon's back.

Taking to the air, the dragon quickly made his way towards the village as the ship docked.

Ex-Veemon flew through the forest and made it to the village making some people stop and stare at the dragon.

"The Fire Nation are here! Prepare for battle!" Daisuke yelled as Ex-Veemon swerved through the village.

People cried out in fear and gasped in horror as they started running to their homes, grabbing their children as they went.

Spotting the village leader, Daisuke jumped off of Ex-Veemon's back and landed in front of the old man.

"We saw a Fire Nation ship docking on the beach. They'll be here soon." she reported.

"This is horrible. What are they doing here?" the leader asked.

"He's after the Avatar. Hurry! Get the warriors now!" Daisuke yelled as she ran off.

Nodding, the man took off to the dojo where he knew Suki and the other Kyoshi warriors would be training.

Ex-Veemon was leading a group of people into one of the huts at the moment when Daisuke ran over to him and looked around the village.

"What do we do now?" the dragon asked.

"I don't know." Daisuke shook her head.

Suddenly, they spotted Zuko and his soldiers riding the backs of rhinos that wore saddles.

The duo of Miracles backed up behind a hut and watched, waiting to see if they would attack.

"Come out, Avatar, you can't hide forever!" Zuko called as he scanned the empty village.

His gold eyes narrowed when he spotted some people peeking out of their windows at him.

"Find him." he ordered his soldiers who rode off into the village.

Just then, Suki appeared and jumped at Zuko and dodged a blast of fire he sent her way, but she was knocked down by his rhino's tail.

Zuko then sent a blast of fire at the girl, but Sokka, who was dressed as a Kyoshi warriors, jumped in and used his metal fan to block the attack.

Ex-Veemon then swooped in and tackled the rhino to the ground making Zuko cry out as he was thrown off his rhino's back and landed on the ground.

Roaring, Ex-Veemon lifted the rhino up and threw it into another rhino and soldier.

"I guess training's over." Sokka commented.

He, Suki and the other warriors then surrounded the downed prince.

Snarling, Zuko pushed himself up onto his hands and swung his legs around, fire blasting around him and knocking the warriors back.

One of the houses had caught on fire making Daisuke gasp as she ran over while Ex-Veemon was taking out the rhinos while the other warriors delt with the Firebenders.

"Nice try, Avatar, but these little girls can't save you!" Zuko called.

"Hey!" someone yelled making him turn.

Daisuke was standing behind him, glaring at him.

"Who gives you the right to come here and attack these people?" she demanded.

"I don't care about them. If they give me the Avatar, I'll leave." Zuko glared back at her.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but that's not gonna happen you creep." Daisuke said.

Snarling, Zuko sent a blast of fire at the girl to startle her, but was surprised when she lifted her hands up instictively and opened her arms causing the flames to move with her arms and they hit the ground behind her.

She also appeared to be stunned from what had happened as her eyes grew wide.

"You-You're a Firebender?!" Zuko yelled in outrage and shock.

Suki was stunned by this news as she looked over at Daisuke, wondering how a friend of the Avatar and Water Tribe siblings could be a Firebender.

"So what if I am?" Daisuke glared back at the prince.

"You traitor!" Zuko yelled as he launched a blast of fire at her.

She backflipped away from the blast that singed the ground where she once stood.

Ex-Veemon then swooped down and grabbed his human and took to the sky while Zuko stared after them agrily, now knowing why the girl had a dragon.

"Hey, over here!" Aang shouted from the end of the street making the prince turn around to face him.

"Finally." Zuko hissed as he sent a blast of fire from his fists at the boy.

Aang dodged the blast, but his staff was knocked out of his hand.

The Avatar then jumped away from the Fire Prince and he landed on the ground where he found two metal fans.

Using Airbending, Aang lifted the fans into his hands and then he started twisting his body as he then swung the fans down to creat a powerful gust of wind that hit Zuko and sent him flying through the wall of a house that was behind him.

Seeing the destruction around him, Aang grabbed his staff just as Ex-Veemon flew over towards him with Daisuke on his back.

"Come on, we need to find Sokka and Katara." the female Firebender told him.

Aang nodded sadly as he climbed onto the dragon and held onto the odler girl's waist as they took to the air.

As they flew over the burning village, the two Benders looked sad at all the destruction that had been caused.

Aang was staring at the burning statue of Kyoshi and felt horrible guilt for what had happened.

Daisuke spotted Katara ushering two chidlren into a house that wasn't on fire and signaled for Ex-Veemon to fly over to her and he nodded as he swooped in.

Seeing her friends, Katara turned towards them as the dragon landed on the ground just as Aang jumped off of his back and Daisuke swerved her body so that she was sitting on Ex-Veemon's shoulder.

"Look what I brought to this place." Aang said quietly.

"It's not your fault." Katara said.

"Yes it is. These people got their town destroyed trying to protect me." Aang told her.

"Look, playing the blame game isn't going to help. Right now, need to get away from this place." Daisuke said.

"She's right. Zuko will leave Kyoshi to follow us. I know it feels wrong to run, but I think it's the only way." Katara told the boy.

"I'll call Appa." Aang bowed his head sadly.

Holding her hand out to Katara, Daisuke then helped the Waterbender onto the dragon's back as Ex-Veemon took to the air and flew after Aang.

They soon found Appa with Momo resting in his saddle, so Aang and Katara jumped into the saddle as the group took off to find Sokka.

Seeing him running out of an alley while Suki ran into battle, Aang steered Appa over to the 15 year old.

"Sokka, move it! We gotta leave!" Daisuke called making him turn to see his friends and sister.

Running over to the dragon, Sokka jumped up and grabbed onto's Daisuke's hand and let her help him climb onto the dragon's back.

"Appa, yip-yip!" Aang snapped the reigns making the bison soar off into the sky with the dragon following him.

Zuko saw the bison and dragon taking off into the air which made him glare as he knew he not only had the Avatar to catch, but also a traitor to the Fire Nation.

"Back to the ship! Don't loose sigth of them!" he yelled to his soldiers.

"I know it's hard, but you did the rigth thing. Zuko would have destroyed the whole place if we stayed. They're gonna be okay, Aang." Katara tried to sooth the boy.

Aang then got an idea as he jumped off of Appa and fell into the ocean making his friends gasp in shock.

Then, the Unagi burst out of the ocean with Aang sitting on its neck, using its whiskers as reigns as he moved the Unagi over to the burning village.

A spout of water then shot out of the Unagi's mouth and it put out the flames on the houses and the statue while also soaking Zuko and his men.

Throwing its head back, the Unagi then threw Aang off its head and the boy was caught by Ex-Veemon.

"Nice moves out there." Ex-Veemon commented as he flew above Appa and dropped the boy into the saddle beside Katara.

"I know, I know. That was stupid and dangerous." Aang relented as his friends as stared at him.

"Yes, it was." Katara stated with s slight smile as she then gave the boy a hug.

Smiling at her two hugging friends, Daisuke then turned back to the boy who had his arms around her waist.

"Hm, green's a good color on you." she smirked at him.

"Shut up." Sokka grumbled as he wiped the make-up off his face.

To be continued...


	6. The King of Omashu

"The King of Omashu"

**I'm not sure what song could fit King Bumi, but the 'Batty Rap' from Ferngully comes to mind simply because of how crazy Bumi is just like Batty. But then again, Batty was experimented on and that's what that song is talking about. Sorry, I can't think of one, but I'd like to know if someone has an idea for a song for this guy. Toph's song is 'Reflection' from Mulan because she tries to be the perfect daughter for her parents and hides her true self from them. Please enjoy and review!**

Aang led Sokka, Katara, Daisuke, Veemon and Appa over a hill where they could see a mountain that had a city built onto it.

"The Earth Kingdom City of Omashu! I used to always come here to visit my friend, Bumi." Aang explained.

"Wow, we don't have cities like this in the South Pole." Katara said in awe.

"They have buildings here that don't melt." Sokka said with wide eyes.

"Well, duh. This is an Earth Kingdom city. Everything here is made of stone so the Earthbenders can Bend it." Daisuke stated with a small grin as she took in the sights.

"Cool!" Veemon grinned as he took in the sight of the buildings built into the mountain.

It reminded him of some of the buildings in the Digital World and it made him feel a bit at home.

"Well, let's go slowpokes. The real fun is inside the city." Aang said as he then used his Airbending to propel himself down the hill.

"Wait, Aang! It could be dangerous if people find out you're the Avatar." Katara told him making the boy stop in his place.

"You need a disguise." Sokka said.

"A disguise?" Veemon asked curiously.

"I guess it would be safer if no one recognized him." Daisuke shrugged.

"So, what am I supposed to do? Grow a mustache?" Aang asked incrediously.

A few minutes later, Aang had a fluffy mustache on his upper lip and had a tall wig that were both crafted out of Appa's fur that the bison had shed.

"Oh, this is so itchy. How do you live in this stuff?" the Airbender asked Appa as he stratched his scalp.

Appa simply looked at him and snorted.

"Great, now you look just like my grandfather." Sokka said as he sat on top of a rock.

"Technically, Aang is 112 years old." Katara crossed her arms.

"Yeah, but can he sell it?" Daisuke asked as she leaned back against the rock.

She was secretly basking in the sunlight, enjoying the warmth of the light that shone down on her.

The girl was a Firebender and her people tended to hate things that were cold and wet.

Aang then kicked his staff up into his hands and spun it around before he slammed it onto the ground and leaned against it, hunched over like a man with back problems.

"Now let's get to skipping young whippersnappers. The big city awaits." Aang said in scratchy voice as he started limping off.

Everyone else simply watched him go in disbelief.

"You'd have to be really dumb to fall for that." Veemon sweat dropped.

Standing, the group followed after the 12 year old boy down into the gorge where they walked up the long winding staircase.

Appa was left behind because he was too big to walk around the city without causing an uproar from the citizens.

"You guys are gonna love Omashu. The people here are the friendliest in the world." Aang praised.

"Rotten cabages! What kind of slum do you think this is?" a man yelled.

Ahead of the group, they saw three guards standing in front of the gate with a man who had a cart filled with cabages.

One of the guards slapped the cabage out of the man's hands and then he Earthbent a stone pillar that made the cart fly off the bridge.

"No, my cabages!" the cabage merchant cried.

Daisuke, Veemon, Sokka and Katara were all stunned about the way the guards had reacted to the old man.

It made them worry about how the guards would treat them, especially if they found out that Aang was the Avatar and that Daisuke is a Firebender in training.

"Just keep smiling." Aang sang as he forced a smile and walked over to the three guards.

Katara forced a grin as she giggled nervously as Sokka remained blank faced while Daisuke and Veemon forced their own smiles.

The guard who sent the cabage cart over the ledge then Bent a boulder over Aang's head and Daisuke had to bite her tongue to stop herself from yelling at the man and calling him crazy.

That would cause some unwanted problems if she lost her temper.

"State your buisness." the man demanded.

Aang then used a bit of Airbending to speed in front of the man.

"My buisness is my buisness, young man, and none of yours!" Aang said in a fake angry old man voice.

The boulder then fell onto the road in front of Daisuke, Sokka, Katara and Veemon making them bounce off the ground.

"Why, I have half a mind to bend you over my knee and paddle your backside!" Aang pointed at the man.

Katara shook her head in disbelief while Sokka's mouth dropped open in shock as his left eye started to twitch and Daisuke was giggling quietly along with Veemon.

"Settle down, old timer. Just tell me who you are." the man said, appearing stunned by the way Aang had spoken to him.

"Name's Bonzu Pippinpaddle-Oppsokopolis the Third. And these are my grandkids and their pet." Aang gestured to the three teenagers behind him.

Veemon gaped in outrage at being called a pet, but simply crossed his arms and pouted angrily.

Katara then gave a sweet smile as she linked arms with Daisuke and pulled the stunned 13 year old over to greet the guards.

"Hi, June Pippinpaddle-Oppsokopolis and this is my sister Ari. It's nice to meet you." the brunette greeted.

"Um, hello sir." Daisuke said with a fake innocent smile as she bowed her head in greeting.

The guard then looked over the two innocent looking girls and the 'old man' standing beside them.

"You two look like responsible young ladies. See that your grandfather stays out of trouble. Enjoy Omashu." the guard said.

"We will!" the two tanned girls chirped.

Everyone then started walking up to the great wall that had the crest of Omashu on it.

Sokka was nervous as he felt the guard's green eyes on him as he passed by him.

"Wait a minute." the guard said as he grabbed Sokka by the shoulder.

Hearing the man say this made Aang, Katara, Daisuke and Veemon stop and turn around in worry.

"You're a strong young man. Show some respect for the elderly and carry your grandfather's bag." the guard poked Sokka as he scolded the teenager.

"Good idea." Aang replied cheekily as he threw his bag at Sokka's head making Veemon snicker at the pouting warrior.

Turning back to the wall, the group watched as the guards used Earthbending to open the wall and saw that two other walls were slidding open as well.

Beyond the walls was the great city of Omashu and the group ventured inside as they glanced around in awe.

When the three Benders, young warrior and dragon walked inside the city, the walls were then closed off behind them.

Walking around the city, they then watched as carts shot past them on stone chutes.

"This is the Omashu delivery system. Miles and miles of chutes. Earthbending brings the packages up and gravity brings them down." Aang explained.

"Great, so they get their mail on time." Sokka said in a bored tone.

"They do get their mail on time, but my friend Bumi found a better use for these chutes." Aang grinned fondly.

"Oh, like what?" Veemon asked the boy with his arms folded behind his back.

(A few minutes later...)

The group of four were squased together in a mining cart with Veemon sitting in Daisuke's lap as Sokka and Katara were nearly on top of each other.

"One ride, then we're off to the North Pole. Airbender's honor." Aang promised.

"This sounded like fun at first, but now that I'm here, I'm starting to have second tho-"Katara then screamed when the cart started to move.

Aang, Daisuke and Veemon were cheering loudly while Sokka and Katara were screaming as their cart shot off down the chute.

Everyone then went silent when a cart full of sharp weapons then started to glide down the chute beside them and they started to scream when the two chutes merged and the cart filled with weapons was moving behind the humans and Digimon.

Sokka then ducks down just as a spear gets too close to him while Katara, Daisuke and Veemon lean agaisnt Aang making him look back at the cart.

"I'm on it!" Aang calls as he rocks the cart they were in and then he launched them out of the chute and slid down a roof making everyone cry out.

They then landed on the ground in front of a group of Earthbender soldiers who all stared in surprise at the sight of the group of children who then bounced off the ground and landed on a roof top.

The cart slid down a few more roof tops making everyone uneasy as they landed on another chute.

"Aang, do something! Use your Airbending!" Katara screams as they sail down a chute.

"Yeah, good idea! That'll make us go even faster!" Aang said happily as he slashed his arms down, creating a gust of wind that made the cart shoot down the chute faster.

Veemon, Katara, Daisuke, Sokka and Aang all scream when they slide down a steep part of the chute and a cart filled with mail is being Bent towards them by an Earthbender.

When the cart is Bent away from the group, they sigh in relief, but start screaming again when another cart is Bent towards them from the chute below.

The cart slams into theirs sending the four humans and the Digimon careening while Momo shrieks as he flies out of Aang's wig and then he clings to Veemon's head.

Aang then uses his Airbending to try and slow down the ride and pull everyone back into the cart as their cart hits a few roof tops and flew through a pottery shop's window and sailed out the second window.

"Sorry!" Aang calls to the people inside the building.

Finally, the cart comes to a stop when it crashes into the cabage merchant's cart making him cry out in horror.

Everyone groaned in relief as they laid out on the soft green cabages while Aang's wig and mustache were destroyed from the impact.

"My cabages! You're going to pay for this!" the merchant yells at them as the guards walk over.

"Two cabages please." Aang said as Daisuke giggled giddily.

"That was one wild ride." she commented as Veemon and Momo both groan as they fall back on the girl's stomach.

(Later...)

When the guards had arrived, they led the group of trouble makers to the palace with the annoyed merchant following, holding a damaged cabage head.

As they entered the throne room, the guards forced Aang, Katara, Sokka, Daisuke and Veemon (who had Momo sitting on his head) onto their knees before the Earth King.

"Your Majesty, these juveniles were arrested for vandelism, traveling under false pretenses and malicious destruction of cabages." the lead guard reported.

"Off with their heads! One for each head of cabage!" the cabage merchant cried wildly.

"Silence! Only the king can pass down judgement. What is your judgement, sire?" the lead guard asked.

Everyone then turned their attention to the old king who had lightly tanned skin, fuzzy eyebrow, wild hair and a wild beard which were all white.

He had spots on his face and one of his eyes appeared to be lazy since it was drooping shut, but was an emerald green color while his other eye was a jade color.

The King was also dressed in royal robes that were green and he wore a strange cap that appeared to have horns coming out of it.

Sokka stuck out his bottom lip and whimpered while Katara had her hands clasped under her chin with a sweet smile, Aang looked away as he whistled innocently while Daisuke and Veemon both made their eyes water and stuck out their bottom lips in a pout.

"Throw them...a feast." the king declared.

The guards all gaped in shock while the cabage merchant slapped a hand over his face in disbelief at the king's verdict.

Katara, Sokka, Daisuke, Veemon and Aang were all stunned by what the king had said and the man was even smiling.

After the group was freed, they were sitting at a large table that was filled with all sorts of food that had been freshly cooked.

"The people in my city have gotten fat from too many feasts, so I hope you like your chicken with no skin." the king said as he held up a chicken leg.

"Thanks, but I don't eat meat." Aang declined polietly.

"How about you? I bet you like meat." the king said as he looked over at Sokka who was happily eating the food.

Veemon was stuffing the food in his mouth happily and was gorging himself so that he had enough energy to digivolve if they went without food for a few days.

Daisuke was also eating her food happily, but at a more calm pace compared to Sokka and Veemon who were stuffing their faces.

"Is it just me or is this guy's crown a little crooked?" Katara asked making Daisuke and Aang look at her as she twirled her finger near her temple.

"Ah, who cares if he's crazy? At least he's nice." Daisuke shrugged with a smile as she sipped at her jasmine tea.

It was cold which made her frown in disgust, but she simply raised the heat in her hand to rise the temperature of the tea.

She then took a sip and was satisfied by the temperature her drink was at and was unaware of the fact that the king had just witnessed what she did.

He simply smirked in amusement as he then turned his attention back to the Avatar.

"So tell me young bald one, where are you from?" the king asked.

"Uh, I'm from...Kangaroo Island!" Aang answered.

"Oh, Kangaroo Island, eh? I hear that place is really hoppin'." the King joked.

Everyone was silent as they stared at the king, but the silence was broken by Sokka laughing hysterically while Daisuke and Veemon held their hands over their mouths as they snickered.

"What? It was pretty funny." Sokka shrugged at Aang and Katara as they gave him a look.

The king then yawned catching everyone's attention.

"Well, all these good jokes are making me tired. Guess it time to hit the hay." he said as he shifted in his seat.

Suddenly, he launched a chicken leg at Aang and the boy lifted his hands up, instictively stopping the piece of poultry with the air.

The guards were stunned by this while the king appeared smug, as if he knew just who the boy was all along.

"There's an Airbender in our presence. And not just any Airbender; the Avatar!" the king stated.

Aang gasped as he dropped his hands into his lap and the chicken leg fell onto his plate.

Looking over at the girl with strange colored hair, the king then smiled smugly at her.

"And he brought a Firebender who has tamed a dragon." the king said.

Daisuke tensed up at this when she saw the glares that were sent her way and how close the spears had gotten to her.

Veemon was glaring at the men who had the audacity to threaten his partner and growled in warning at them.

"Now, what do you have to say for yourselves, Mister and Miss Pippinpaddle-Oppsokopolis?" the king asked.

"...That fake name sucks and we should have chosen a different one?" Daisuke gave a nervous grin.

The king was only amused by her words as the Airbender pouted at her before he turned his attention back to the old man.

Aang then gulped as he held his hands up as if to calm everyone.

"Okay, you caught me. I am the Avatar, doing my Avatar thing, keeping the world safe. Everything checks out, no Firebenders here. Well, except for Daisuke, but she's good. So, good work everybody. Love each other, respect all life and don't ram it with your spears. We'll see you next time!" Aang said cheerfully as he got up.

He, Katara, Sokka and Daisuke, who had Veemon in her arms and Momo on her shoulders, were all backing up towards the door to leave, but soon found themselves cut off by the guards standing behind them with their spears crossed.

Freezing at this, the group then turn towards the king.

"You can't keep us here. Let us leave." Katara said.

"Lettuce leaf?" the king questioned as he held up a piece of lettuce before he then took a bite out of it.

"We're in serious trouble. This guy is nuts." Sokka whispered to the other.

"Thank you, captain obvious." Daisuke drawled.

"Tomorrow the Avatar will face three deadly challenges but for now, the guards will show you to your chamber." the king said as he finished his lettuce leaf.

"My liege, do you mean the good chamber or the bad chamber?" the guard standing beside the king asked.

"The newly refurbished chamber." the king responded.

"Wait, which one are we talking about?" the guard asked in confusion.

"The one that used to be the bad chamber, until the recent refurbishment that is. Of course we've been calling it the new chamber. We really should number them." the king said thoughtfully.

The guards then started leading the group of four humans and the Digimon and lemur-bat out of the room as the king stood up.

"Take them to the newly refurbished chamber that was once bad." he ordered.

"That man's a real wack-a-doo." Veemon muttered as Momo chittered in agreement.

(Later...)

The group was then shoved into the newly refurbished chamber and the door was slammed close behind them.

"This is a prison cell? But it's so nice." Katara said as she looked around the green colored room that had four beds with nice green linnen sheets and a yellow table to sit at.

There were also green glowing crystals on the wall along with drapes to decorate the room to make it seem comfortable.

"He did say it was newly refurbished." Aang pointed out as Momo leapt off the Firebender's shoulder and landed on a bed.

"Nice or not, we're still prisoners." Sokka stated.

"Hey, at least we weren't tied up and thrown into a jail cell." Daisuke said as she sat on the bed.

Veemon nodded as he remembered the time the two of them alongside Yolei, Hawkmon, Armadillomon, Cody and Sora had gone to the Digital World to look for Biyomon.

Venturing into a saloon, they met Starmon who had a dark ring on him and he threw the group into the jail cell where they found Biyomon, weak and tied up.

Deputymon then arrived and he let Yolei and Sora out because he said that he needed some people to play cards with him and boys cheated.

Daisuke then decided to stay in the cell with Cody so he wouldn't be left alone.

Deputymon then took Sora, Yolei, Biyomon and Hawkmon with him while the others were left to starve in the cell.

When Starmon checked on them, he was angered by what Deputymon did and he ran off after him while the others used the ropes to grab the bento box Starmon left on his desk so Daisuke and Cody could feed their partners.

They then armour digivolved and they broke out of the cell to go save their friends and destroy the control spire.

"I wonder what these challenges are gonna be?" Aang mused.

"We're not sticking around to find out. There's gotta be some way out of here." Katara placed her hands on her hips.

"The air vents!" Aang exclaimed.

Everyone then turned their attention to the wall where there were small round holes that were created for the air to circulate in the room.

"If you think we're gonna fit through there, you're crazier than that king." Sokka snarked.

"Unless you wanna shove Momo through the vents." Daisuke smirked as Momo's ears twitched at hearing his name.

Momo was ying on the bed licking an apple as Aang turned to him with a confident look.

"Momo, I need you to find Appa and bust us out of here." Aang said as he then grabbed the lemur-bat and started shoving Momo into one of the vents.

"Go on boy. Get Appa." Aang encouraged as he kept trying to shove Momo into the hole, but he wouldn't fit.

Seeing that the lemur-bat was stuck, Aang stopped pushing the lemur-bat and slumped his shoulders in defeat.

"Eh, how was Appa supposed to save us anyway?" Sokka asked as he was lying on his bed.

"Appa is a ten-ton flying bison. I think he could figure something out." Aang told him.

"Yeah, like crash through the cieling." Veemon said as he swung his legs back and forth as he sat on the edge of the bed.

Momo was trying to pull himself out of the hole, but his legs dropped when he realized he was stuck and needed help.

"Well, no point arguing about it now. Get some rest, Aang." Katara advised as she crawled into bed.

After taking pity of Momo, Daisuke pulled the lemur-bat out and she crawled into her own bed and cuddled up with Momo and Veemon.

Everyone then slowly started to drift off to sleep as the light created by the crystals faded to darken the room.

Early in the morning, guards snuck into the room and picked up the sleeping Daisuke, Katara, Sokka and Veemon.

They carried them off to an underground chamber and placed rings on their fingers; Katara wearing a jade ring, Sokka had a solidate ring, Daisuke wore an amethyst ring and Veemon had a topaz ring on.

Slowly, the group started to wake up, Daisuke's eyes fluttering open and she sat up in shock when she saw the strange room she was in.

"What's going on here?" she asked looking around and saw her friends sleeping.

"Guys, wake up! Something's wrong!" she called making them moan in their sleep.

Growling in frustration, the girl brought her fingers to her lips and gave a loud, sharp whistle that made everyone jump up in surprise.

"What? What happened?" Sokka asked as he jumped up.

"Huh? Where are we? Where's Aang?" Katara asked as her turquoise eyes searched the room.

"I hate to state the obvious, but I think something bad is about to happen." Veemon said.

Suddenly, he picked up a sweet scent and he followed it to the ring that was around his finger.

"Huh? Hey, did we all get married last night?" he asked making everyone look at the rings they wore.

"What are these things?" Katara asked as she looked over the ring she wore.

"I don't know, but Veemon's right. This is really bad." Sokka frowned.

Just then, the guards walked into the room making the group turn towards them.

"So, you're awake. Good. The Avatar's challenges will be starting soon." the leader said.

"Why are we here?" Daisuke demanded.

The guard then backhanded Daisuke, sending the girl crashing tot he ground making Katara, Sokka and Veemon gasp in horror.

"Silence yourself, Firebender!" the guard sneered.

Veemon snarled in anger as his scarlet eyes flashed dangerously, his fangs grinding together painfully.

"You can't do that to her!" Sokka yelled as he and Katara tried to rush over to help the girl.

They were stopped by the other guards who grabbed their arms and held them back from helping their friend.

"I believe I can after what her people have done." the guard said.

He then looked down at the girl who glared up at him, her chocolate eyes reflecting red in them like a burning flame.

Grabbing her arm, he then pulled her to her feet as the wall in front of them moved away to reveal Aang and the king who was wearing a purple robe.

"Ooh, I thought you might refuse, so I gave your friends some special souvenirs. Those delightful rings are made of pure jennamite crystal, also known as creeping crystal. It's a crystal that grows remarkably fast. By nightfall your friends will be completely covered in it. Terrible fate really. I can stop it, but only if you cooperate." the king said.

Suddenly, the crystals started to creep up onto the three teenagers' and the dragon's hands making htem cry out.

"Ah! It's already creeping!" Sokka yelped.

"I'll do what you want." Aang said with a stony expression towards the mad king who grinned menacingly.

The crazy king laughed as he stood on a balcony that overlooked the cave that the group were standing in, waiting on the challenges.

"It seems I've lost my lunch box key and I'm hungry. Oh, there it is. Would you mind fetching it for me?" the king pointed to the waterfall and everyone saw the key that was hanging in the water.

Aang glared at the king before he then started jumping up the pillars that were around the waterfall and then he dived inside the water.

He grabbed onto the ladder that was inside the water and he struggled to grab onto it properly.

"Ooh, climbing the ladder. No one's thought of that before." the king said sarcastically.

The force of the falling water then pushed at Aang, making him lose his grip on the ladder and he fell down into the water towards the sharp pillars below him, but he stretched his body out to catch himself between two pillars and stopped his descent.

Aang sighed in relief and looked over at his friends who all gave him encouraging smiles at the crystals started creeping up to their shoulders.

He then started jumping the pillars with the use of Airbending and propeled himself rapidly up into the waterfall to grab the key.

Unfortunatly the falling water knocked him off course and he trhew himself out of the water and grabbed onto one of the pillars.

"That's right, keep diving head in. I'm sure it will work eventually." the king drawled.

Aang suddenly came up with an idea as he broke off a piece of the pillar and perched on the now flat surface.

Looking at the key, he then threw the sharp piece of rock like a dart and spun around, using air to propel the dart faster towards the key and it pierced the key into the arch above the king's head.

"There! Enjoy your lunch. I want my friends back now!" Aang shouted.

"Oh, not yet. I need help with another matter. It seems I've lost my pet Flopsie." the king said.

A few minutes later, Aang was in a dirt pen searching for the elusive animal to return it to the king.

"Okay, found him!" Aang called when he found a white rabbit sitting on a rock.

"Bring him to me! Daddy wants a kiss from Flopsie." the king cooed.

"Come here, Flopsie." Aang smiled as he tip-toes over to the rabbit.

A loud thump then sounded behind him and the boy turned around and chuckles nervously at the sight of the massive goat-gorilla that stood behind him and the rabbit hopped away.

The goat-gorilla then growls as it tries to grab Aang, but the boy jumps into the air and flips over the beast causing it to crush the rock.

"Flopsie, wait! Flopsie, wait!" the boy calls as he chases after the terrified rabbit as the goat-gorilla goes after Aang.

"Flopsie!" Aang calls and makes a sharp turn as he chases after the rabbit and glances over his shoulder at the creature chasing him.

Looking at the rabbit, he saw that it was about to run into a hole in the wall, so he uses his Airbending to shoot himself over to the rabbit to grab it, but the rabbit runs into the hole and Aang rams into the wall making his friends wince.

"Wait a minute..." Aang says as he looked over at the goat-gorilla in realization.

Jumping to his feet, he faced the charging beast with a curious expression.

"Flopsie?" he asked hesitantly, then cringed and raised his arms up to protect himself as the beast almost crashed into him.

The goat-gorilla then stopped and his lion like tail wagged happily as he then pulled Aang into a hug and licked his face happily.

"Flopsie!" Aang laughed as he scratched the beast's head.

A whistle then sounded making Flopsie drop Aang and rush over to the king and dropped onto his back in front of the man eagerly.

"Oh, that's a good boy. Yes, who has a soft belly?" the king cooed as she rubbed Flopsie's belly.

"Guys, are you okay?" Aang asked as he looked over at his friends who had crystals covering half of their bodies.

"Other than the crystal slowly encasing my entire body? Doing great." Katara snarked.

Crystal then started to grow on one side of Sokka throwing him off balance and he tipped over due to the uneven weight.

"Just finish these challengese so we can get away from these creeps." Daisuke frowned.

Looking at the side of the girl's face, Aang was shocked to find that her lip had been split, almost as if she had been hit.

Gaining new determination, the boy jumped over to where the king was tending to his pet and then he looked over at the young Avatar.

"Come on, I'm ready for the next challenge." the boy said.

A mischivous grin spreads across the king's face as he looks over the boy.

"Your final test is a duel. And as a special treat, you may choose your opponent." the king says as he leads Aang into an arena.

Two frightening looking men then walk up on either side of their king holding sharp weapons as they gave the young monk vicious smiles.

"Point and choose." the king said jovially with his hands folded into the sleeves of his robe.

"So you're saying whoever I point to, that's the person I get to fight?" Aang asked thoughtfully.

"Choose wisely." the king said.

The boy thinks over his decision as he looks over the two imposing men.  
"I choose you." Aang said as he looked at the king.

"Wrong choice." the king chuckled.

Cracking his fingers, the king then stands up properly as his robes fall away to reveal the muscular and fit body that the king hid.

Aang, Katara, Daisuke, Veemon and Sokka were all stunned as they stared at the king.

Slamming his foot on the ground, the king creats a crack that hisses out a geyser of dirt that launches Aang into the arena below the balcony they were standing on.

He yelped as he flew through the air and when he hit the ground and and flipped over and skidded with a groan.

With a harsh laugh, the king jumped down from the balcony and landed in front of Aang, the force of his feet hitting the ground creating a large dent in the earth.

"You thought I was a frail old man, but I'm the most powerful you'll ever see!" the king declared.

"Can I fight the guy with the ax instead?" Aang asks.

"There are no take-backsies in my kingdom. You might need this." the king said as he points to a guard who trhew Aang his staff.

As the boy caught his staff, he then started dodging the boulders that were thrown at him by the king.

"Typical Airbender tactic. Avoid and evade. I'd hoped the Avatar would be less predictable." the king sneers.

As he stomped the ground, a large boulder rose and was quickly launched at Aang who jumps into the air with a small yelp and spun his staff above his head.

"Don't you have any surprises for me? Sooner or later, you'll have to strike back." the king said.

He kicked up a boulder and then jumped up and kicked both his feet towards it, sending it up at the cieling which caused it to break and the debris then rained down on Aang and knocked him out of the air and he landed hard on the ground, his body making a crater from the impact as his staff slid away from him.

"Aang!" Katara cried out.

"Get up and fight back! I don't care if you're passifist, just get up and show crazy pants over there that you can take him!" Daisuke called.

Her body was nearly completely covered by the amethyst crystal and Katara was in the same state with the jade, Sokka with the solidate and Veemon with the topaz crystal.

Veemon was sniffing around the room at the sugary scents he had picked up; blue raspberry, kiwi, strawberry and banana.

Lifting himself up, the boy takes a deep breath as he jumps up and runs towards the king and dodged the rocks that started to shoot out of the ground and a large rock suddenly hits Aang in the stomach and sent him into the air.

"Aw, you'll have to be a little more creative than that." the king taunted as Aang jumps from the rock and creats an air scooter.

Using the air scooter, Aang charges the king, dodging the rocks that were sent his way by the Earthbender and he redirects his scooter to the wall and rides on the wall towards the king.

When he was close enough, the Airbender lifted his arms and slashed them down, creating a gust of wind towards the king, but the Earthbender sent up a slab of stone to block the attack.

"Did someone leave the windows open? It feels a little drafty in here. Are you hoping I'll catch a cold?" the king mocks.

The Earthbender then knocked the slab over and created a wave of rocks underneath the slab and he sent it rolling towards the Airbender.

As Aang tried to avoid it, he was then hit by the wave of earth as it lurched upwards and knocked him to the ground and he bounced a few times before he landed on his feet.

The king slammed his fist onto the ground and sent a wave of earth at the boy causing him to flip backwards and kicked off the wall as he grabbed his staff as he flipped away and landed on his feet again.

"How are you going to get me from way over there?" the king jeered.

Frowning, the young Avatar charged the king as he held his staff like a bat, but the king Bends the ground into sand and Aang sunk to his waist when he ran into it.

Then the king raises two large boulders and sends then towards Aang and they slammed together, but Aang managed to spin out of the sand before he was crushed and swung his staff down, sending a powerful gust of air that hit the king and knocked him into the wall.

Suddenly, the king then sends a boulder towards Aang from behind, but the boy backflips over the rock and glides over it and the boulder continues its course towards the king who gasps as he turned the boulder into dirt.

Just then, the king Bended the balcony making Aang yell as he then started running around in a circle, creating a tornado as the king threw the balcony at him, but the tornado simply caught the balcony in its orbit and sent it flying back at the Earthbender.

He broke the balcony in half and the two pieces landed away from him, but Aang then appeared and landed in front of the man, holding his staff pointed towards his throat with a grin.

The king then grinned as a pebble fell on Aang's head making the boy look up curiously and was stunned to see the large boulder that was above the two Benders.

"Well done, Avatar. You fight with much fire in your heart." the king chuckles as he then threw the boulder onto the ground away from them.

He then fell into the earth and was sucked inside, only he appeared on the balcony where the three teenagers and the Digimon encased in crystal were.

Aang jumped up onto the balcony as well and placed his glider on his back.

"You've passed all my tests. Now you must answer one question." the king placed his hands on his hips.

"That's not fair! You said you would release my friends if I finished your tests." Aang exclaimed.

"Aw, but what's the point of tests if you don't learn anything?" the king drawled.

"Oh, come on!" Sokka groaned.

"We're never getting out of here." Veemon frowned.

"Answer this one question and I will set your friends free. What...is my name?" the king asked the question.

Aang appeared shocked by this question as the others were confused.

"From the looks of your friends, you only have a few minutes." the king noted as he looked over at the group covered in colorful crystals.

"How am I supposed to know his name?" Aang asked as he turned to his friends.

"Think about the challenges. Maybe it's some kind of riddle." Katara suggested.

"I got it!" Sokka exclaimed making everyone look at him.

"Yeah?" Daisuke asked with a raised eyebrow.

"He's an Earthbender, right? Rocky! You know, because of all the rocks!" Sokka smiled.

Everyone was silent as they stared at the teenager blankly.

"Idiot." Veemon muttered.

"We're gonna keep trying, but that's good back-up." Katara said.

"Okay, so back to the challenges. I got a key from a waterfall, I saved his pet and I had a duel." Aang said thoughtfully.

"And what did you learn?" Katara asked.

"That this guy's nuttier than a chipmunk?" Daisuke quipped.

"Well...everything was different than I expected." Aang mused.

"And?" Katara encouraged as the crystals continued to grow over them.

"Well, they weren't straightforward. To solve each test, I had to think differently than I usually would." Aang said with a fist to his chin.

Suddenly, his gray eyes grew wide when he then figured out the answer.

"That's it! I know his name. I solved the question the same way I solved the challenges. As you said a long time ago, I had to open my brain to the possibilities." Aang turned to face the king who had put his robe back on.

The man then laughed loudly, snorting and hiccuping as well.

"Bumi, you're a mad genius." Aang grinned at the king and then rushed forward to hug the old man who returned the embrace happily.

"Oh, Aang, it's good to see you. You haven't changed a bit. Litteraly." the king, Bumi, said.

"Uh, over here!" Katara called making the two old friends look at the quartet.

"Little help!" Sokka added.

"We're still covered in crystal." Daisuke reminded.

"Or did you forget?" Veemon asked.

Bumi then moved his hands and the four crystals shattered around their prisoners and Bumi caught a stray shard that flew towards him.

"Jennamite is made of rock candy. Delicious!" Bumi smiled as he took a bite out of the candy.

"Oh, so that's what that sugary scent was!" Veemon exclaimed.

"So this crazy king is your old friend Bumi?" Katara asked.

"Who you calling old? Okay, I'm old." Bumi sighed.

"Why did you do all this instead of just telling Aang who you were?" Sokka asked.

"First of all, it's pretty fun messing with people," Bumi snorted a laugh making the duo of Miracles giggle.

"But I do have a reason. Aang, you have a difficult task ahead. The world has changed in the 100 years you have been gone. It's the duty of the Avatar to restore balance to the world by defeating Fire Lord Ozai. You have much to learn, you must master the four elements and confront the Fire Lord and when you do, I hope you will think like a mad genius." Bumi said.

Aang then placed his fist in the palm of his other hand as he gave a bow towards his old friend.

Bumi then glanced over to the Waterbender, Firebender, dragon, lemur-bat and the young warrior.

"And it looks like you're in good hands. You'll need your friends to help you defeat the Fire Nation." Bumi told the Avatar.

Momo then jumped onto Aang's shoulder and wraps his tail around the boy's head.

"And you'll need Momo too." Bumi nodded at the lemur-bat.

"Thank you for your wisdom. But before we leave, I have a challenge for you." Aang smirks at the curious man.

(Later on...)

Katara, Sokka, Daisuke and Veemon watch as Bumi and Aang cheer while they ride the mail carts around the city.

Spotting the guard who hit his partner talking to a group of soldiers in training, Veemon smirked devilishly as he stalked over.

Momo chittered curiously as he watched his dragon friend walk off towards the guard and jumped onto Sokka's head.

"Hey, Momo, what are you doing?" Sokka demanded as he pulled the lemur-bat off his head.

"Hey, where's Veemon?" Daisuke asked.

"Over there!" Katara pointed.

The group turned to see Veemon walking over to the guard and watched as the dragon tapped the man's back.

"Yes, what is it?" the guard asked in an annoyed tone.

A blue fist was then slammed into his face, sending him flying back into the cabage cart making the cabage merchant cry out in outrage.

"My cabages!" he tugged at his hat.

"That's for hitting my partner!" Veemon called after the guard.

"Ha!" Sokka laughed as he pointed at the guard who was lying in the broken cart.

Katara shook her head in amusement while Daisuke smiled sweetly at her partner as he sauntered over with a pleased expression.

Once he was standing in front of her, the Firebender scooped her dragon into her arms and kissed his head making him giggle.

"Thanks, pal." she said as she hugged him.

"No one messes with my friends." Veemon smiled as he returned the hug.

To be continued...


	7. Imprisoned

"Imprisoned"

**Zhao's song is 'Savages' from Pocahontas because of the way he invades the Nothern Water Tribe to destroy them. Ozai's song is 'Be Prepared' from the Lion King because of how he tries to kill Aang so that he can rule over everything and everyone. Please enjoy and review!**

Katara and Daisuke both worked together to pack the bedrolls while Aang and Veemon lounged around on the ground.

Sokka was walking over towards them with a bag in his hands making everyone look at him expectantly as he kneeled in front of the girls and opened the bag he held.

"Great, you're back! What's for dinenr?" Aang asked the 15 year old as he sat up excitedly.

"We've got a few options. First; round nuts and some kind of oval nuts and some rock shaped nuts that night just be rocks." Sokka said as he showed the group the nuts he held in his hand.

He then emptied the sack and the nuts/rocks poured onto the ground making Veemon and Momo sniff at them in disdain.

Looking through them, Sokka then tossed what he assumed was a pebble over his shoulder making Momo chase after it.

"Dig in!" he smiled at the group who all gave him blank looks.

"Seriously, what else ya got?" Katara asked as as looked at the nuts her brother had given her.

"I'm pretty sure these are rocks." Daisuke commented as she held a rock between her pointer finger and thumb.

Momo then picked up the pebble he chased after and tapped it against a boulder to check and see if it was a nut and when it did so, there was a loud booming noise that made everyone tense up in shock.

"What was that?" Sokka asked as everyone stood up and looked off in the direction the sound came from.

Curiously, Momo dropped the pebble on the rock and the booming noise erupted once again making the lemur-bat chitter in fear as he leapt onto Veemon's head and held his furry ears down with his paws.

"It's coming from over there!" Aang pointed.

"C'mon! Let's go check it out!" Daisuke called as she took off in the direction of the booming noise.

Veemon and Momo were quick to jump onto the girl, the dragon holding onto her shoulders while the lemur-bat sat on her head.

Katara and Aang followed after their friend while Sokka also chased after them, though he was reluctant.

"Shouldn't we run away from huge booms, not towards them?" Sokka called after them.

The group then continued following after the sounds and hid behind a fallen log as they looked over to see what had caused the noise.

To their surprise, it was a 16 year old boy with long chocolate brown hair, tanned skin and peridot green eyes dressed in green clothing and he was Earthbending.

He was Bending a large boulder into the air and crashed it into the side of a ravine and the impact upon the ravine's wall created a booming noise.

"An Earthbender!" Katara smiled.

"Let's go meet him!" Aang suggested.

Daisuke smiled as she watched the boy practise his Earthbending and it reminded her of how her sister used to train with their grandfather.

"He looks dangerous, we better approach cautiously." Sokka warned.

"Too late." Katara giggled.

Everyone looked ahead to see Daisuke was walking over to the boy with a kind look on her face as Momo flew after her and Veemon was still hanging on her shoulders.

"Hi there!" the girl greeted.

Stunned at the sudden appearance of the girl, the Earthbender whirled around and met the chocolate brown eyes of the girl.

The boulder he had been Bending then dropped to the ground and Daisuke was surprised to see that there was fear in his eyes as he then ran off.

Backing up, he then ran down the ravine and he Bent the rocks around the ravine to block his path.

"Nice to meet you!" Aang called as he, Sokka and Katara walked up to stand beside the stunned Digidestined.

"Well, that was rude." Veemon pouted.

"We just wanted to say 'hi'." Katara said with a confused shrug.

"That look in his eyes... He was scared." Daisuke frowned.

"Hey! That guy's gotta be running somewhere. Maybe we're near a village. And I bet that village has a market." Aang suggested.

"Which means no nuts for dinenr!" Katara smiled.

"Yes! Real food!" Veemon cheered as he pumped a fist into the air.

Excitedly, the three young teenagers then ran off to find the village to gather some new supplies for their journey.

"Hey! I worked hard to get those nuts." Sokka protested as he crossed his arms.

Momo then flew over Sokka's head with a chitter making the boy sigh in defeat as he slumped forward.

"Yeah, I hated 'em too." the young warrior relented as he ran after his friends and sister.

After running for a few minutes, the group then found a small village and Aang was a straw hat is his hands as he spoke to a man.

"Great hat. I'll trade you some nuts for it." the Avatar offered.

Katara and Daisuke were looking around the village as the people walking around when suddenly the Waterbender saw the boy from before walking into a shop.

Grabbing the Firebender's wrist, Katara pulled Daisuke along with her to the shop while the boys followed the girls.

"Hey, you're that kid." Katara said as the group walked into the shop making the boy and the woman who owned the shop look at them.

The boy stared at the girls with a look of worry.

"Why did you run away before?" Katara asked.

"Uh, you must have me confused with some other kid." the Earthbender denied.

"No she doesn't. We saw you Earthbending." Aang stated.

The woman then gasped at this making the boy tense up as the woman rushed over to him.

"They saw you doing what?" she demanded.

"They're crazy, Mom. I mean, look at how they're dressed." the boy exclaimed as he pointed at the group.

Everyone then looked down at their clothing since no one else in the village wore blue, yellow or orange; the villagers all wore green.

"You know how dangerous that is! You know what would happen if they caught you Earthbending!" the woman said fearfully.

This then made Daisuke tense up as memories of the time when Bending was hidden to protect the Benders from the Chi Blockers.

"Open up!" a male voice demanded from outside the shop as someone banged their fist on the door.

Sokka then lifted the blinds to look outside the window while the mother went tense in fear.

"Fire Nation! Look natural." the young warrior told the group.

Aang then leaned against a barrel while Katara held a bowl filled with berries and stuck one in her mouth and appeared frozen while the Earthbender and Sokka examined an apple and Daisuke was leaned against a counter.

The shop owner then opened the door to allow the soldiers inside as they looked at the teenagers inside when suddenly Aang slipped and fell against the barrel.

"What do you want? I've already paid you this week." the woman glared at the soldiers.

"The tax just doubled. And we wouldn't want an accident, would we?" the lead general sneered as he lit his hand on fire.

Daisuke glared at the man along with Veemon, the duo of Miracles watching the man to see if he would attack.

"Fire; it's sometimes hard to control." the soldier said darkly as he made the fire fade.

The woman's hard expression faded and she gained a look of defeat as she looked to the ground.

Walking around the counter, she then took the coins she still had out of the box and placed it into the soldier's outstreched hand.

"You can keep the copper ones." the man sneered as he tossed the coins to the floor and walked out of the shop.

"What a creep!" Veemon exclaimed as he hopped down to the floor and gathered up the coins.

The Earthbender and his mother stared at the talking dragon in shock, but shook it off as he smiled and held the coins out to the woman who accepted them and place dthe coins back into her money box.

"How long has the Fire Nation been here?" Sokka asked.

"Five years. Fire Lord Ozai uses our town's coal mines to fuel his ships." the woman explained.

"They're thugs. They steal from us and everyone here is too much of a coward to do anything about it." the Earthbender snapped as he crossed his arms.

"Quiet, Haru! Don't talk like that." his mother scolded.

"But Haru's an Earthbender. He can help." Katara insisted.

"Earthbending is forbidden. It's caused nothing but misery for this village. He must never use his abilities." Haru's mother stated.

"How can you say that? Haru has a gift. Asking him not to Earthbend is like asking me not to Waterbend. It's a part of who we are." Katara said.

"You don't understand." the woman said firmly.

"I understand that Haru can help you fight back. What can the Fire Nation do to you that they haven't done already?" Katara demanded.

"Katara!" Daisuke snapped making the girl look at her and was surprised to see the anger in the 13 year old's eyes.

"They could take Haru away. Like they took his father." the woman said sadly.

(Later...)

Haru led the group to the shed and opened the door as everyone walked inside and looked around at all the hay that filled the barn.

"My mom said you can sleep here tonight, but that you should leave in the morning." Haru informed.

"Thanks. I'll make sure Appa doesn't eat all your hay." Aang said as Appa started eating the hay that was lying around.

Haru then walked out of the barn and Daisuke followed after him since she felt that the two of them had something in common.

"Hey, Haru!" she called making him glance over his shoulder at the girl.

He couldn't determine what nation she came from since she looked to be a combination of them all, but her hair was a strange anomaly.

"I'm sorry about Katara. She doesn't understand what it's like." Daisuke apologized.

"That's okay. It's funny; the way she talked back in that store, it reminded me of him." Haru gave a wry smile.

Daisuke smiled as well as the two tanned teenagers continued walking along.

"Really? Tell me about him." she requested with a cute smile making him chuckle at her.

"My father was very courageous. When the Fire Nation invaded, he and the other Earthbenders were outnumbered 10 to 1, but they fought back anyway." Haru explained.

"He sounds like a great man." Daisuke smiled as she followed Haru up to a small incline.

"After the attack, they rounded up my father and every other Earthbender and took them away. We haven't seen them since." Haru explained as he kneeled near the edge of a small cliff.

"And that's why you hide your Bending." Daisuke sighed, understanding him completely.

"Yeah." Haru agreed as he picked up a few pebbles and started to levitate them above his hand in a circular rotation.

"The problem is, the only way I can feel close to my father now is when I practice my Bending. He taught me everything I know." Haru said.

Sighing sadly, the girl then lifted a hand up and gripped the necklace she wore and she thought back to her parents, sister and all her friends back home.

She missed them terribly, but didn't stop to really think about them with the crazy antics she and her news friends had gotten into.

Haru then looked at the girl with a thoughtful expression.

"You know though. About what it's like. How do you know?" he asked the girl.

She looked down sadly as she remembered her past and how she grew up with her mother always telling her and Jun to never Bend.

Jun never really listened and used her Earthbending when she was sure no one was looking, but Daisuke had been scared and never once used her Firebending at all.

"Where I come from, my sister and I were told to never use our Bending. All Bending was banned. It's not like it is here where you get taken away though. Even Firebending wasn't allowed. Anyone who was seen Bending would be killed." Daisuke looked down sadly.

"What?! But why?" Haru asked in horror as he jumped to his feet.

"A group of non-Benders called Chi Blockers think Benders are evil and they developed a way to stop us from Bending to protect ourselves. When we were down and powerless, the Chi Blockers would then kill us. They did it to my grams when I was a little kid." the mahogany haired girl sighed sadly.

Haru was horrofied by this news he was given, unable to believe that there were people who were just as cruel as the Fire Nation.

"But why? Why would they kill all of the Benders?" Haru asked.

"Because Bending is unnatural to them. They think people like us aren't human and are too dangerous to live. I mean, Benders can create wild fires, tsunamis, earthquakes and tornadoes. Wars and battles have been going on for years because of this. The Chi Blockers think that if they kill off the Benders, then the world will be peaceful. Where I live the Fire, Water, Earth and Air Nomads all live together and have started families together to live in peace and hide away from the Chi Blockers." Daisuke explained.

There were tears sparkling in her eyes at this as she remembered the fear she always felt and it was still there, stopping her from unlocking her Bending.

She was trying to move on, but she could still feel the lock on her Bending and wasn't unable to unlock it.

Haru frowned sadly as he placed a hand on her shoulder making the girl look at him and she forced a smile up at him.

"It sounds really sad, but at least all four nations are working together where you come from. That part actually sounds nice. By the way, what kind of Bender are you anyway?" he asked with a grin.

This made her smile falter since she remembered what happened last time someone found out she was a Firebender.

Before she could answer, the two teenagers then heard the sound of rocks falling and saw dust lifting into air from the mine.

"Help!" someone cried out.

"The mine!" Haru cried as he and Daisuke then took off running towards the mine.

When they arrived, they found an old man burried under the rubble and gave them a pleading look.

"Help me!" the man called out as he tried to pull his lower body out.

The two teenagers were quick to rush over and tried to pull the man out as rocks still seemed to tumble down and they heard the straining.

"It's not working. We need help." Daisuke gasped as she tried to pull the man out.

"There's no time! Pull harder!" Haru cried as he tried to stop the rocks from falling with his body pressed against them.

"Of all the days to leave Veemon behind." the girl gritted her teeth as she then kicked at the rocks to move them away as she tried to pull the man out, but it was no use.

"It's no use. Haru..." Daisuke said as she looked up at him.

Fear then filled his eyes and he shook his head.

"I can't." he protested.

"Haru, please! I know you're scared. I'm still scared to Bend too. But you can't let your fear stop you from doing what's right! Bending is the only chance we have right now. Would you really let an innocent man die and be haunted with the fact that you could have saved him?" Daisuke asked.

Looking to the ground, Haru knew that she was right and he stepped away from the mine and stood in front of the man and girl.

Taking a stance, the Earthbender then took in a deep breath as twisted his body and thrust his hands forward, making the rocks fly down the tunnel of the mine.

Daisuke let out a breath of relief and smiled at Haru and he returned it with a proud smile.

(That night...)

When Daisuke returned to the barn, she told her friends where she had been and what had happened.

"It was so brave of Haru to use his Earthbending to help that old man." Katara smiled when she was told the story.

"Yeah, I'm just glad he got over his fear, even if it was only for a minute." Daisuke smiled as Veemon was curled up beside her sleeping.

"You must have really inspired him." Aang smiled at the blushing girl.

"Yeah, maybe." Daisuke said.

"Everyone should get some sleep. We're leaving at dawn." Sokka reported.

"Dawn?! Can't we sleep in for once?" Katara asked.

"Absolutely not! This village is crawling with Fire Nation troops. If they discover Aang, we'll be eating fireballs fore breakfast. Good night." Sokka said as he got ready to sleep.

"I'd rather eat fireballs than nuts." the brunette female snipped with a smirk.

"Good night!" Sokka snapped.

Katara, Daisuke and Aang all giggled at this as they then settled down to sleep on the soft hay.

During the night, a sound was then heard outside of the barn and it woke Momo up.

Cooing in curiosity, the lemur-bat then jumped onto Daisuke's stomach to wake her up and the girl groaned as her eyes fluttered open.

"Momo, what is it?" she moaned as she looked at the lemur-bat.

Momo then chittered as he pointed at the door making the girl stand up as she went to go see what had gotten the creature so worked up.

When she opene dthe door, she was stunned to find the soldiers standing there with Haru bound and gagged.

Behind the soldiers was the old man they had been saved from the mines.

"Wha-"Daisuke began, but was stopped when the leader placed his hand over her mouth and dragged her out of the barn.

"Are you sure this one is an Earthbender?" one of the soldiers asked.

"No, but she said she was a Bender." the old man said.

Daisuke growled as she struggled against the man who was holding her against his chest with his hand over her mouth.

One of the soldiers was tying her hands together and Haru watched on with sad eyes.

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter what type of Bender she is. We can't have any brats causing problems." the leader smirked.

Glaring, Daisuke then rammed her head back intot he man's mouth making him cry out in pain and his hand slipped off the girl's mouth.

"Veemon!" she yelled.

Another soldier then used another piece of rope and shoved it in her mouth and tied it around her head as an atempt to gag her.

"Fiesty little thing. Get them to the prison. Now!" the leader ordered.

"Yes, sir." the two soldiers nodded as they then dragged Haru and Daisuke off into the night.

After walking for a few hours, the soldiers came to a harbor and escorted the two teenagers onto the ship that was made out of metal.

Once they were on the ship, the soldiers threw old brown and tattered tunics at the Benders to wear and sent them off to where the other Earthbenders were.

"Daisuke, I'm so sorry about this." Haru said once they were away from the soldiers.

"This isn't your fault. If anyone's to blame, it's that old man." Daisuke sighed as she looked around her.

There were mostly men that were on the ship and they looked tired, weak and appeared to have the hope drained from them.

It made the girl frown sadly as she looked around and Haru was also upset as he recognized the people from his village whom he hadn't seen in years.

"This is all so awful." Haru sighed.

"At least they're alive." Daisuke gave a small grin to try and show optimism.

Haru forced a grin at the girl, knowing she was only trying to raise his spirits.

"And they're also amoung friends. I may even find my father here!" the Earthbender's peridot eyes widened as they filled with hope.

Grabbing his friend's hand, Haru then pulled her off to search the group of people for the man he called father.

An hour went by as the sun rose higher in the sky and the duo were sitting near the edge of the boat to look out at the water.

"He's not here." Haru said sadly as he stared at his reflection.

"Haru, you can't give up. I'm sure he's around here somewhere. We just haven't found the right place to look yet." Daisuke comforted him as she placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe, but I've been hoping for the day I got to see my father again. This just might not be the day." Haru said sadly.

"Are you sure about that?" someone asked.

Stunned, the two teenagers turn around to see a man with lightly tanned skin, white hair and a beard was standing behind them.

He also had the same peridot colored eyes as Haru.

"Hello, Haru. It's been a while." the man smiled fondly.

"Father? Is that really you?" Haru asked in awe.

The man nodded which made the boy jump to his feet and rush over to hug his father making Daisuke smile at the precious sight.

"I've missed you so much, Father." Haru said.

"I've missed you too, Haru. How is your mother?" the man asked.

"Things have been difficult, but she tries her best to get by." Haru said.

Nodding at this, the man then turned his attention to the girl who was watching them and his eyes landed on the necklace she wore.

"And who is this lovely young lady?" he smiled sincerely at her.

"Ah, Father, this is Daisuke. She's a friend of mine." Haru said as he smiled at the girl as she stood and walked over to join the men.

"Daisuke, this is Tyro, my father." Haru introduced.

"It's nice to meet you." Daisuke smiled up at the balding man.

"And you. Now, tell me, how did you two get captured?" Tyro asked.

(Sunset...)

The warden then had the Earthbenders gather around so that he could address them along with the newcomers.

He appeared to be a man in his fourties and had a smug air around him as he looked over his prisoners.

Tyro and Haru were both flanking Daisuke to protect her since they didn't want anyone to hurt her if they found out she was a Firebender.

Tyro had figured it out himself and told his son when Daisuke was busy helping an old man with a bad back lie down properly.

Haru had been stunned by this revelation, but decided to keep his friend's secret since he knew she wasn't anything like the other members of the Fire Nation.

"Earthbenders, it is my pleasure to welcome you aboard my modest shipyard. I am your warden. I prefer to think of you, not as prisoners, but as honored guests and I hope you come to think of me as your humble and caring host." the warden said.

"You will succeed here if you simply abide by-"

The warden was cut off by a man who started coughing violently making Daisuke look at the man in worry since he sounded sick.

Annoyed, the warden then kicked a blast of fire at the man making the ill man jump back fearfully.

"What kind of guest dishonors his host by interupting him? Take him below! One week in solitary will improve his manners." the warden ordered.

"That son of a..." Daisuke growled as she felt her body heat up in anger.

Tyro placed a hand on her shoulder to calm the girl as they watched the ill man being dragged away by the guards.

"Simply treat me with the courtesy I give you." the warden said as he walks down the line up of people.

He then stopped in front of Daisuke and sneered at her which made her glare at him as her eyes reflected red inside them.

"And we'll get along famously." the warden smirked.

The warden then walked off as Haru gave his friend a worried look as he watched her glare at the man with disgust.

"You will notice, Earthbenders, that this rig is made entirely of metal. You are miles away from any rock or earth. So if you have any illusions of employing that brutish savagery that passes for Bending for your people, forget them. It is impossible." the warden taunted.

Daisuke really wished she could Bend her flames so that she could teach this creep a lesson.

"Good day." the warden said coldly as he walked off.

"Come along you two." Tyro said as he gestured for Haru and Daisuke to follow him back onto the rig.

"Daisuke!" someone called.

Stunned, the girl turned around, only to have her Waterbender friend pull her into a hug.

"Katara! What are you doing here?" the Firebender asked as she looked into the girl's turquoise eyes.

"When we found out you got captured, I came up with this plan to come rescue you." Katara explained.

"Great. Does it involve taking names and kicking butt?" Daisuke asked.

"Sort of." Katara shrugged.

"Love it! Let's do it." Daisuke grinned making Katara laugh in amusement.

Haru then walked over to the two girls with a smile as Katara looked over at him.

"Haru!" Katara smiled as she hugged the boy.

"Katara, come on, there's someone I want you to meet." Haru said as he led the two girls over to where Tyro was sitting.

He was in a circle with a group of people around a food table.

"Katara, this is my father Tyro. Dad, this is Katara." the young Earthbender introduced.

"It's an honor to meet you." Katara bowed respectfully as the man stood up.

"Have some dinner, Katara." Tyro offered her the bowl of foul looking soup.

"It's not as bad as it looks." the man assured.

Both girls then grabbed a bowl as they sat down on the ground and tasted the soup, but they gagged at the cold and sour slop.

"It's still pretty bad though." Tyro shrugged.

Another man then walked over to Tyro and placed a hand on his shoulder to gain his attention.

"Tyro, the prisoners are complaining that there aren't enough blankets to go around." the man informed.

"I'll talk to the guards. In the meantime, make sure the elderly are taken care of. The rest of us will have to hope for warmer weather." Tyro sighed.

Once the man left to tend to the elderly, Katara turned her attention to Tyro.

"If you don't mind me asking; what's your escape plan?" the brunette asked.

"Excuse me?" Tyro quirked a brow at her.

"You know, the plan to get everyone off the rig? What is it? Mutiny? Sabatoge?" Katara questioned.

"The plan? The plan is to survive, wait out this war. Hope that someday some of us can get back home and forget this ever happened." Tyro explained.

"And how's that working out for you?" Daisuke quipped.

Haru frowned and elbowed her side gently to reprimand her.

"How can you say that? You sound like you've already given up!" Katara exclaimed in shock.

"Katara, Daisuke; I admire your courage and I envy your youth. The warden is a ruthless man and he won't stand for any rebellion." Tyro said.

"The warden is nothing more than a bully! You can't just let him push you around like this. Stand up for yourself!" Daisuke declared.

"I am sorry, but we're powerless." Tyro bowed his head sadly.

Katara and Daisuke both scowled at this, but then the Waterbender rose to her feet.

"We'll see about that." the brunette said.

Staning onto the food table, the 14 year old grabbed a spoon and started banging it against a pot lid making the people on the rig turn their attention to her.

"Earthbenders, you don't know me, but I know of you. Every child in my Water Tribe village was rocked to sleep with stories of the brave Earth Kingdom and the courageous Earthbenders who guard its borders." Katara announced.

The warden was watching the girl as she spoke and stopped his guards from stopping her speech.

"Some of you may think that the Fire Nation has made you powerless. Yes, they have taken away your ability to Bend, but they can't take away your courage. And it is your courage they should truly fear, because it runs deeper than any mine you've been forced to dig, any ocean that keep you far from home. It is the strength of your hearts that make you, who you are, hearts that will remain unbroken when all rock and stone eroded away. The time to fight back is now! I can tell you the Avatar has returned! So remember your courage Earthbenders! Let us fight for our freedom!" Katara yelled.

Daisuke smiled at her proudly, but then the Firebender noticed that no one took the speech to heart.

Katara's shoulder's sagged in defeat and Daisuke stood up, taking her friend's hand making the girl look at her with sad eyes.

(That night...)

Katara and Daisuke were sleeping beside each other, the Firebender's unnaturally warm body keeping the Waterbender warm from the chilly night air.

Aang then snuck onto the rig and shook their shoulders making the two girls wake up to see the Airbender.

"Shh..." Aang held a finger to his lips.

He then led the two girls over to where Sokka was waiting on them with Appa, Momo and Veemon.

When they were close enough, Veemon jumped into his partner's arms and hugged her making the girl smile happily.

"I missed you!" the dragon said.

"I missed you two, Veemon." Daisuke said as she held his close.

"Your 12 hours are up. Where's Haru? We've got to get out of here." Sokka said from his place in Appa's saddle.

Aang then jumped onto Appa's head and held the reins.

"I can't." Katara whispered.

"We don't have much time. There are guards everywhere. Get on." Sokka held his hand out to the girls.

"Katara, what's wrong?" Aang asked.

"I'm not leaving. I'm not giving up on these people." Katara declared.

"What do you mean you're not leaving?" Sokka snapped.

"I can't abandon these people! There has to be a way to help them." Katara said.

"Maybe she's right. What do you think, Daisuke?" Aang asked.

"I think we need to help them. They've given up on themselves. It's horrible! We need to do something." the child of Miracles said.

"It wouldn't be right to leave them." Veemon agreed.

"I think you're all crazy." Sokka hissed as the lights from the watch tower then shone down on them making the group duck down.

"Last chance. We need to leave. Now!" Sokka said.

"No." Katara stated.

"I hate when you get like this. Come on, we better hide." Sokka said when the light passed over them again.

The group then ran off to go hide from the guards so they wouldn't get caught by anyone.

They then ducked down behind some boxes and peered over them to make sure no one was following them.

"We don't have much time. What are we gonna do?" Sokka asked.

"I wish I knew how to make a hurricane." Aang frowned.

"That'd be cool, but I don't see how that'll work." Veemon said.

"But the warden would run away and we'd take his keys." Aang explained his logic.

"Wouldn't he just take his keys with him?" Sokka asked.

"I'm just tossing ideas around." Aang pouted.

"I tried talking the Earthbenders into fighting back, but it didn't work. If there was just a way to help them help themselves." Katara said.

"For that they'd need some kind of earth or some rock. Something they can Bend." Sokka said thoughtfully.

"But this entire place is made of metal." Katara pointed out.

Daisuke frowned at this when she then smelt the coal burning and turned her attention to the smoke that was drifting out of the chimney.

"Wait, the chimney, look. They must be burning coal. They have coal on this ship." the girl said with a determined sparkle in her eyes.

"And coal is a type of earth." Aang smiled.

The four teenagers then came up with an idea to help the Earthbenders escape.

To be continued...


	8. Freedom

"Freedom"

**Azula's song is 'Mother Knows Best' from Tangled because the song is just so manupulative just like she is. Jet's song is 'Get Offa My Back' from Spirit because of his attitude. Ty Lee's song is 'I Wanna Be Like Other Girls' from Mulan 2 because she ran away from home to live her own life the way she wanted. Now, as for the song that is shown in the story, it's called 'A Mother's Prayer' and Daisuke's singing voice is Liz Callaway. Please enjoy and review!**

"It's almost dawn." Katara whispered to Sokka as the group hid behind a vent on the ship.

"We're running out of time. You sure this is gonna work?" the Waterbender asked.

"It should. These vents reminded me of our little trick back at the village. We're gonna do the same thing, but on a much bigger scale." Sokka explained.

The group had told Daisuke about how they had faked Earthbending by Aang sending a burst of air through the vents to lift a large boulder.

Of course, Momo was standing under the boulder when it was lifted into the air and the soldiers assumed that it was the lemur-bat who had done it.

"I hope this works." Daisuke whispered as she looked up to where Aang was standing on the narrow platform above their heads.

"It will. I think." Veemon said.

The Digimon and Digidestined then turned their attention to Sokka when he began telling his friends and sister his plan.

"There's a hug deposit of coal at the base of the silo and the whole system is ventilated. Aang closed off all of the vents except one. When he does his Airbending, the coal only had one place to go. Right back here." the young warrior explained.

"There's the intruder!" someone shouted.

Sokka, Katara, Daisuke and Veemon jumped to their feet and stood back to back as the guards ran at the group and surrounded them.

Curious of the noise, the prisoners ran over to see what was happening, Haru and Tyro stunned to see the girls being surrounded.

"Stay back! I'm warning you!" Sokka demanded as he held up his metal boomerang.

"Katara, Daisuke! Stop! You can't win this fight!" Tyro told the two girls firmly.

Katara looked at the man while Daisuke simply glared at the guards that were prepared to attack and Haru was staring at the Firebender in worry when the warden then appeared.

"Listen to him well, children. You're one mistake away from dying where you stand." the warden drawled coldly.

Daisuke glared at him, her eyes flashing red as Veemon growled at the man, ready to digivolve when needed.

The guards then started closing in on the three teenagers and the dragon when suddenly a rumbling sound was heard.

Looking over to the vent, everyone saw a geyser of coal burst out of the vent and Aang followed after it, covered in soot.

Standing on top of the pile, he coughed as he shook off the soot.

"Here's your chance, Earthbenders! Take it! Your fate is in your own hands!" Katara called as she picked up a piece of coal.

Haru stepped forward, but Tyro held his arm out in front of his son to stop him as the other Earthbenders backed away.

The warden then cackled at this making Daisuke turn to the man with an angered look, feeling her body to heat up as golden sparks crackled around her fingers.

"Foolish girl. You thought a few inspirational words and some coal would change these people? Look at these blank, hopeless faces. Their spirits were broken a long time ago. Oh, but you still believe in them. How sweet. They're a waste of your energy, little girl. You failed." the warden mocked.

"Shut up!" Daisuke yelled, her voice booming through the air.

Looking at the girl, the warden gave her a hard look.

"People like you make me sick! You're nothing more than a stupid creep! You're nothing more than an egocentric bully who needs to seriously get over himself!" the child of Miracles yelled.

Everyone was silent at that while Veemon was grinning up at his partner.

"You should learn to hold your tongue, girl." the warden glared as he lifted a fist and fire covered his hand.

As he was about to throw it at her, a piece of coal was thrown at the warden's head making him flinch in pain and the flame sputtered out.

Turning, everyone saw that Haru was glaring at the man as coal was spinning around his hand.

Snarling, the warden sent a blast of fire at Haru, but Tyro Earthbended a wall of coal up to protect his son from being burned.

"Show no mercy!" the warden yelled to his guards who all then sent out streams of fire at the Earthbenders.

Katara, Daisuke, Veemon, Aang and Sokka watched as the Earthbenders all banded together as they created a large wall of coal to block the flames.

"For the Earth Kingdom! Attack!" Tyro yelled as he and the Earthbenders all slammed their hands onto the ground and sent up a wall of coal flying at the Firebenders.

Fire and coal was then sent flying around the ship as the battle started while Sokka used his boomerang to snap a non-Firebending soldiers spears in half and tossed the sharp ends at Momo who flew ahead and grabbed them.

A Firebender then sent a blast at Daisuke, but the girl took in a breath as she waved her arm, redirecting the flame into another soldier.

"Hey, ya did it!" Veemon bounced in amazement.

"I can control the flames, but I can't create them yet." Daisuke said, but she was still feeling awed by what she had done.

Haru and Tyro then transformed the coal into a sphere and they launched it at the entrance to the prisoners' housing area, knocking down two guards in the process.

"Get tot he ship! We'll hold them off!" Tyro called to the Earthbenders.

"Do not let them escape!" the warden shouted as he saw the Earthbenders, Avatar, Waterbender, Digidestined, Digimon and young warrior escaping.

Seeing the flames being kicked at them, Aang stooped as he spun around and created a funnel of wind between his hands.

"Guys, throw the coal!" Aang called to his friends.

Daisuke, Veemon, Sokka and Katara then started dumping the coal into the funnel that blasted the coal at the Firebenders, knocking them down.

Tyro and the Earthbenders then used their Bending to lift the coal underneath the warden and his men, pushing them to the side of the rig until their were hovering above the ocean.

"No! Please, I can't swim!" the warden begged.

"What kind of grown man can't swim?" Veemon asked curiously as he rubbed his chin.

"Don't worry. I hear cowards float." Tyro quipped as the warden and his men were dropped into the ocean.

(Later on...)

After making it back to land, the prisoners shed off the brown rags they were given and were congragulating each other for their escape.

Haru and Daisuke were standing near the ocean as they watched the rig slowly sinking into the water and the soldiers were rushing towards land.

"I want to thank you for saving me. For saving us" Haru said to the girl.

"What are you talking about? I didn't do anything. You guys saved yourselves." Daisuke smiled at the teenager.

"Yeah, all ya needed was a little coal." Veemon grinned as he bounced over.

"It wasn't the coal, it was your and your friends. If you guys had never come here, then we'd still be under the oppresion of the Fire Nation. You really did help us, especially when you helped us fight and stood up for us." Haru said.

The praise made the girl blush as she turned her attention to the orange colored sky and she felt the heat was the sun fading as it started to set.

Tyro then walked over to where his son and his friend were standing and the man placed a hand on the girl's shoulder making her look up at him.

"Thank you for helping me find my courage, Daisuke the Firebender. My family owe you and your friends so much." he said sincerely.

Hearing what he called her, she tensed up and waited for someone to insult her and attack her, but was shocked when it didn't happen.

Looking around, she found that no one was glaring at her, but some glanced in her direction with kind smiles as they spoke with Sokka, Katara and Aang.

"How'd you know that?" Veemon asked Tyro.

"I knew when I saw her necklace." Tyro explained.

"And some of the villagers saw you Firebend." Haru added.

"And they don't wanna kill me?" Daisuke asked in disbelief.

"You've shown them who you are. They accept you because of the person you are, not what you were born as." Tyro told her.

This made the girl smile at the man as she then looked over the people around her.

"So, I guess you guys are heading back home now, right?" she asked.

"Yes, to take back my village." Tyro smiled as he then turned to face his people to address them all.

"To take back all of our villages! The Fire Nation will regret the day they set foot on our land!" Tyro announced making the Earthbenders cheer loudly as they raised their fists into the air.

Haru smiled at his people before he then looked at the young Firebender who was standing at his side, grinning at the restored faith in the Earthbenders.

"Come with us." Haru offered catching her off guard as her head whipped around to face him.

"Sorry, but I can't leave my friends." she told him.

Veemon looked at his human, smiling as he knew her loyalty to her friends out weighed even her courage and hope.

"I promised to help them get Aang to the North Pole." Daisuke told Haru.

Nodding at this, Haru's peridot green eyes then roamed over to Appa and found Aang sitting on the bison's head as he used his Airbending to keep Momo away from a piece of coal while Sokka lounged in the saddle and Katara was standing beside the bison, watching with a smile.

"That's him, isn't it? The Avatar?" Haru asked.

"Yep. That's the hope for humanity." Daisuke chirped as she watched Momo jumped into Aang's arms and the bug hugged his pet happily.

"Daisuke, thank you for bringing my father back to me. I never thought I'd see him again. I only wish there was some way to repay you." Haru turned to the girl.

"You don't need to repay. That's what friends are for, right?" Daisuke smiled at him.

"Not exactly." Veemon shrugged making the girl frown as she then whacked his over the head making Haru chuckle in amusement.

"Daisuke!" Katara called making the duo of Miracles turn their attention over to the Waterbender as she ran over to them.

"Huh? Katara, what's wrong?" Daisuke asked when she saw the horror stricken look on her friend's tanned face.

"My mother's necklace! It's gone!" Katara annouced as her hand rested over her bare neck.

Feeling a sense of dread fill her stomach, Daisuke reached up to neck to check for her own necklace, but was shocked to find it gone.

"My grams' necklace is too!" she gasped.

"They must've fallen off during the escape." Veemon concluded and was a bit worried.

He knew that those necklaces meant the world to the two girls and they would go insane with worry at having the last reminders of Kya and Hana gone forever.

"Come on, maybe they're on land somewhere. Let's spread out and search for them." Haru said trying to calm the girls.

"But what if they fell off on the rig?" Katara asked with tears sparkling in her eyes.

"Then we'll have to leave them." Sokka said as he and Aang walked over to them.

"What?! Sokka, those necklaces are important!" Daisuke insisted heatedly.

"We need to go back for them." Katara added.

"Look, I understand how important they are. Really, I do, but we can't risk getting caught by Zuko or any of the Fire Nation. I know this hurts, but we have to leave them." Sokka said with a frown.

Katara stared at the ground sadly while Daisuke clneched her teeth as she felt tears pricking at her eyes and blurred her vision.

Veemon cooed sadly as his ears lowered against the sides of his head as he sensed the sorrow from his partner.

"Come on, guys. I'm sure we'll see them again. You just have to have faith." Aang said with a reasuring smile.

Both girls looked up at him, Katara forcing a smile while Daisuke rubbed at her eyes to rid herself of the tears.

Climbing into Appa's saddle, the group then took off, leaving behind Haru and his father as they went back to their village.

Veemon was lying in his human's lap and Katara had her head resting against Daisuke's shoulder as the two Benders' auras radiated depression.

Momo was silent as he sat on Aang's shoulder as the Airbender focused on flying Appa, unsure of what to do or say to make the girls smile again.

Sokka was just silent as he polished his boomerang, also upset that his mother's necklace had been lost.

Suddenly, Veemon perked up as he came up with an idea on how to raise everyone's spirits.

"Hey, Daisuke, can you sing us a song?" he asked.

This startled everyone making them look at the dragon and then at his partner who was staring at him questioningly.

"What?" she asked.

"You can sing?" Sokka asked, his tone showing disbelief.

"You have a problem with that?" Daisuke asked irritated.

"I didn't know you could sing. Could you sing us something?" Aang asked brightly.

"I don't know. The only songs I know are from my time." Daisuke said with a small blush.

"I'd actually like to hear one, if you don't mind." Katara smiled tiredly.

Looking down at her friend, Daisuke then bit her bottom lip as she thought over whether or not she should sing.

It might make things less tense and would make her friend smile.

Also, singing would help her feel better as well.

"All right, fine." Daisuke sighed.

"This should be good." Sokka smirked as he crossed his arms as he waited.

Katara sat up properly as she wiated for her friend to sing, eager to hear what songs in the future were like.

Crossing one arm over her torso, Daisuke placed a hand on her cheek as she thought over what song she could sing and decided not to use one that would startle everyone.

Thinking back to a song that her mother, Narumi, had sung to her and Jun when they were young, she perked up as she then took in a deep breath and opened her mouth.

_"I pray you'll be my eyes._

_And watch her where she goes._

_And help her to be wise._

_Help me to let go._

_Every mother's prayer._

_Every child knows._

_Lead her to a place._

_Guide her with your grace._

_To a place where she'll be safe."_

Everyone stared at the girl, stunned by the soft, beautiful voice that came out of her mouth and smiled peacefully at her.

Sighing fondly, Veemon laid down as he watched the look on his partner's face as she sang.

Katara knew that this song was important and sat back to enjoy the song as she listened to it.

Aang was amazed by the song and it made him wish that he had a mother of his own.

Sokka was stunned, he didn't think that the girl could sing at all!

She looked so content and at peace as she sang the song, a soft smile curving her lips as she did so and the sun set making her hair glow.

_"I pray she finds your light._

_And holds it in her heart._

_As darkness falls each night._

_Remind her where you are._

_Every mother's prayer._

_Every child knows._

_Need to find a place._

_Guide her with your grace._

_Give her faith so she'll be safe._

_Lead her to a place._

_Guide her with your grace._

_To a place where she'll be safe."_

Opening her eyes, which she didn't realize she had closed, Daisuke looked at her friends who were all staring at her and it made the girl blush.

"What?" she asked irritably.

"That was beautiful." Katara smiled serenly.

"It was great! I never heard such a pretty song before." Aang praised with a wide grin.

Their words just served to make the girl blush a darker shade of red and heated up her face.

"Eh, it wasn't that bad." Sokka shrugged making everyone frown at him.

"Shut up." Daisuke punched him arm, but both teenagers were smiling.

Satisfied that his plan had worked, Veemon smiled at everyone as Appa continued flying through the orange sky that was turning purple and pink as the moon started rising.

To be continued...


	9. The Winter Solstice part 1

"The Winter Solstice part 1"

**Please enjoy and review!**

Daisuke yawned as she was lying down in the saddle with Veemon curled up beside her and Momo was curled up as he sat on the dragon's head.

Sokka was whittling at a piece of wood to appease his boredom as Katara lied down in the saddle as she peered out at the sky and Aang was lying back on Appa's head using his arms to cusion his tattooed head and had a piece of grass hanging from his lips.

"Those clouds look so soft, don't they? Like you could just jump down and land on a big, soft cottony heap." Katara said dreamily.

"Maybe you should give it a try." Sokka smirked.

"You're hilarious." Katara glared at him.

"But, hey, if you wanna try, I'm sure we could give you a little push." Daisuke grinned smugly over at Sokka who frowned at her while Katara smirked and Veemon snickered.

"I'll try it! Yeah!" Aang cheered as he grabbed his staff and leapt off of his bison's head and drifted into the sky towards the clouds.

"What?!" Veemon yelped as he and the three humans rushed over to the side of the saddle and watched the Airbender.

They watched as Aang fell through the clouds, disappearing as the group searched for any orange or yellow to indicate where the boy was.

Suddenly, he used his glider to soar back onto his bison and the group turned around to see the soaking wet boy close his glider.

"Turns out, clouds are made of water." he said.

"You're crazy." Daisuke shook her head at the boy as he used Airbender to dry himself off.

"Hey, what is that?" Katara spoke up as she pointed at something in front of them.

Turning, the group moved to the front of the saddle and stared at the forest below them with a look of horror on their faces.

A large streak of land had been burnt down, leaving the chared remains amoung the greenery.

"It's like a scar." Sokka commented as Appa flew down towards the area.

Once the bison landed in the center of the land, the group climbed down from the saddle and walked around, observing the destruction.

"Listen. It's so quiet." Sokka whispered as he then noticed footprints on the ground and he knelt down to look them over.

"It's so sad." Veemon whimpered as his ears pressed against his head.

Daisuke walked around the land, a sad frown on her face as she saw there were no animals and no plants at all.

Aang was standing in the center of the land with his shoulders hunched and a despaired look on his face.

"Aang, are you okay?" Katara asked.

"Fire Nation! Those evil savages make me sick! They have no respect for-"

Sokka's tirade was cut off by Katara and Daisuke shushing him as their gazes were on the upset Avatar.

"What? I'm not allowed to be angry?" Sokka snapped at the two girls.

Daisuke placed her hands on her hips as she frowned at him while Katara points over to where Aang was standing and realization filled the young warrior's face.

"Why would anyone do this? How did I let this happen?" Aang asked as he bent down and scooped up the ash that fell through his fingers.

"This isn't your fault." Daisuke spoke up as she walked over tot he boy and kneeled beside him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Daisuke's right, Aang. You didn't let this happen. It has nothing to do with you." the Waterbender folded her hands in front of her.

"Yes, it does. This is my fault. It's the Avatar's job to protect nature, but I don't know how to do my job." Aang sat cross legged as he stared at the ground sadly.

"That's why we're going to the North Pole. To find you a teacher." Katara said.

"Yeah, a Waterbending teacher. But there's no one who can teach me how to be the Avatar. Monk Gyatso said that Avatar Roku would help me." Aang spoke.

"The Avatar before you? He died over a hundred years ago. How are you supposed to talk to him?" Sokka asked.

"I don't know." Aang hung his head sadly.

Sighing, Daisuke sat down on the ground beside the boy and stared at his face, giving him a comforting smile.

"Hey, you'll figure it out. You just need to keep trying. Don't give up yet." the Firebender told him.

Spotting an acorn on the ground, Katara then smiled as she got an idea and she picked it up as she turned towards aang and Daisuke.

"Hey, Aang! You ready to be cheered up?" she called making Daisuke look back at her curiously.

"No." Aang said gloomily, but was then hit in the head by an acorn that the Waterbender had thrown at him.

"Ow! Hey, how is that cheering me up?" Aang asked as he looked at Katara while Daisuke covered her mouth to hide her grin.

"Cheered me up." Sokka chirped with a laugh as Veemon smirked, but then the dragon snickered when Katara threw an acorn at her brother's head.

"Ow. Yeah, I probably deserved that." Sokka muttered as Daisuke giggled.

Walking over to the Airbender and Firebender, Katara then kneeled down in front of them and showed Aang the acorn in her hand.

"These acorns are everywhere, Aang. That means the forest will grow back. Every one of these will be a tall oak tree someday, and all the birds and animals that lived here will come back." Katara explained as she placed the acorn in Aang's hand and closed his fingers around it.

Staring at his hand, Aang then perks up as he smiles at the 14 year old.

"Thanks, Katara." he said.

The Waterbender smiled back, but gasped when she saw someone heading their way and Daisuke jumped to her feet when she heard the footsteps and Veemon rushed over to protect her.

"Hey, who are you?" Sokka demanded as he ran over and stood in a defensive position as the old man came closer.

"When I saw the flying bison, I thought it was impossible. But those markings...are you the Avatar, child?" the man asked.

Aang looked over at Katara and the duo of Miracles who shared a look before they then nodded at the Airbender, giving their consent and so he nodded at the man.

"My village desperately needs your help!" the man exclaimed as he looked at the group pleadingly.

"This won't end well." Veemon muttered.

(Later...)

The sun started to set when the man led the group of teenagers and their creatures to the village which was partially destroyed by whoever or whatever attacked the village.

Everyone stared at the destroyed buildings in curiosity as the man ushered the group inside of a building that was still standing and found a group of people inside.

"This young person is the Avatar." the old man declared.

A man then turned around and walked over to the group of teenagers and he bowed in front of Aang in respect.

"So, the rumours of your return are true. It is the greatest honor of a lifetime to be in your presence." the man greeted.

"Nice to meet you too." Aang said as he bowed to the man as well.

"So, is there something I can help you with?" he asked as he straightened up.

"I'm not sure." the leader of the village frowned.

"Our village is in crisis! For the last few days at sunset, a spirit monster comes and attacks our village. He is Hei Bai, the black and white spirit." the old man explained.

Veemon and Daisuke narrowed their eyes at this while Katara stared at the entrance as she watched the sun set and Sokka frowned at the men in front of him.

"Why is it attacking you?" Sokka asked.

"We do not know. But for each of the last three nights, he has abducted one of our own. We are especially fearful because the winter solstice draws near." the village leader explained.

"What happens then?" Katara asked.

"As the solstice approaches, the natural world and the Spirit World grow closer and closer until the line between them is blurred completely." the old man explained.

"Hei Bai is already causing devastation and destruction. Once the solstice is here, there's no telling what will happen." the leader said as he looked at the teenagers and the dragon.

"And what do you want Aang to do about this spirit monster thingie?" Veemon asked stunning the people in the room as they jumped at the fact that a dragon was alive and talking.

"Who better to resolve a crisis between our world and the Spirit World than the Avatar himself? You are the great bridge between man and spirits." the old man said as he crouched in front of Aang.

"Right... That's me." Aang said uncertainly.

"Hey, great bridge guy, could I talk to you for a second?" Katara asked as she pulled Aang over to an open window to speak with him.

"Aang, you seem a little unsure about all this." she said.

"Yeah, that might be because I don't know anything at all about the Spirit World. It's not like there's someone to teach me this stuff!" Aang exclaimed as Sokka, Daisuke and Veemon walked over to join their friends.

"Chill, Aang. Getting worked up over this isn't gonna help." Daisuke said as Veemon scoffed at the fact that his hot headed and usually impulsive partner was telling someone to calm down.

As if she had read his mind, Daisuke turned to Veemon and bonked him over the head.

"So... Can you help these people?" Katara asked the 12 year old.

"I have to try, don't I? Maybe whatever I have to do will just...come to me." Aang smiled nervously as Momo sat on his shoulder.

"I think you can do it, Aang." Katara smiled sincerely at him.

Veemon, Sokka and Veemon smiled serenely at the boy in front of them as well.

"Yeah. We're all gonna get eaten by a spirit monster." Sokka mused.

"Shut up." Daisuke chirped at the 15 year old.

Afterwards, the group and the villagers all got into place to wait for Hei Bai to arrive.

Aang walked out onto the street alone while his friends were forced to hide in the building with the villagers as they watched.

"Hello? Spirit? Can you hear me? This is the Avatar speaking. I'm here to try to help and stuff." Aang called as he wandered around the village as the sun sunk lower in the sky.

"This isn't right. We can't sit here and cower while Aang waits for some monster to show up." Sokka grumbled as he leaned against the window.

"If anyone can save us, he can." the old man said calmly.

"But he doesn't have to do it alone." Daisuke glared at the man.

"That's right. We should be helping him." Sokka folded his arms.

Katara sighed at this as she watched her friend walking around outside, waiting for Hei Bai to arrive when the sun finally sunk into the sky and the moon rose.

"The sun has set. Where are you, Hei Bai?" Aang called as he stood in front of the gates that led into the village.

"Well...spirit, uh... I hereby ask you to please leavt this village in peace!" Aang called as he twirled his staff and then slammed the bottom onto the ground to command authority.

All was deadly silent which confused everyone, but also made them nervous.

"Okay... Well, I guess that's settled then." Aang said unsure.

As he turned to walk back into the village, he was unaware of the whispering voices that blew on the breeze from the forest.

A large black and white monster then appeared, walking on six arms and two legs as it followed Aang into the village and when the boy heard the heavy breathing, he spun around to see the monster.

"Uh, you must be the Hei Bai Spirit. My name is-"

Aang was cut off by Hei Bai sneidng a blast of blue energy out of his mouth at the boy and then the creature stalked off into the village.

"My name is Aang! I'm the Avatar and I would like to help! Hey, wiat up!" the boy called as he chased after Hei Bai who started smashing buildings and insinerating them with his energy blasts.

"The Avatar's methods are...unsual." the village leader noted as he watched the boy run after the mighty beast.

"It doesn't seem to be interested in what he's saying. Maybe we should go help him." Sokka insisted.

"No! Only the Avatar stands a chance against the Hei Bai." the old man said as he held a hand out to stop anyone from going outside.

"And you blind? He's failing miserably out there." Veemon stated as he sat on the window sill.

"Veemon!" Daisuke reprimanded.

"Aang will figure out the right thing to do, guys." Katara tried to sooth her brother and her friends' worry.

Hei Bai smashed another building as Aang ran after him, unsure of how to talk to the beast peacefully.

"Please, will you stop destroying things and listen?" the Airbender begged as he jumped up onto a building that was in front of Hei Bai.

"I'm trying to do my job as spirit bridge. Excuse me, would you please turn around?" Aang called to the beast who had its back to him as it continued with its destruction.

"I command you to turn around!" Aang yelled as he lost his temper.

Hearing this, the angered beast whirled around and used one of his arms to hit Aang, sending the boy flying into the roof of another building.

"That's it! He needs help!" Sokka snapped as he ran out of the building to help his friend.

"Sokka, wait!" Katara cried as she rushed after her brother.

"It's not safe." the villager leader said as he grabbed her arm, preventing the girl from running outside.

"Veemon, let's go!" Daisuke pulled out her D-3 as it started to give off a blue glow.

Nodding, Veemon jumped outside and Daisuke rushed after him making everyone stare in wonder as the dragon was covered in blue lights.

"Veemon digivolve too...EX-VEEMON!"

Ex-Veemon then swooped in and punched Hei Bai in the face, sending the spirit crashing to the ground as Sokka and Daisuke ran over to stand beside Aang.

"Sokka, Daisuke, go back! And call off Ex-Veemon!" Aang told them.

Roaring, Hei Bai set an energy blast at the dragon who soared higher into the air and evaded the attack.

"We'll fight him together, Aang." Sokka told the boy as he pulled out his boomerang and threw it at Hei Bai, distracting it from trying to attack Ex-Veemon.

"I don't want to fight him unless-"

Aang stopped talking when Hei Bai suddenly turned his attention to his two friends and went to attack them.

"Look out!" Ex-Veemon cried out as he swooped in to help.

"Sokka, watch it!" Daisuke screamed as she threw the teenager out of the way.

She screamed when she was then grabbed by Hei Bai and the beast ran off towards the forest with the Digidestined.

"Daisuke!" Ex-Veemon shouted as he flapped his wings hard and gave chase after Hei Bai.

"No!" Sokka cried as he pushed himself up and stared in horror as the spirit disappeared with his friend.

Opening his glider, Aang then jumped into the sky and gave chase along with the worried dragon to save their friend while Katara ran out of the building.

"Daisuke!" the Waterbender cried as she ran towards the gates as the villagers walked out of their homes and whispered amoung themselves as they stared into the forest.

"Let go of me!" Daisuke yelled as she heated up her body to startle Hei Bai enough to loosen his grip, but it didn't work.

Ex-Veemon then neared the beast and sent out a blast of orange light at Hei Bai's back, but it didn't affect him.

"You let go of her you freak show!" the dragon snarled as he rammed into Hei Bai's side.

Growling, Hei Bai then punched Ex-Veemon and sent him crashing into the trees making Daisuke gasp in horror.

"Ex-Veemon! You leave him alone you big jerk!" the girl yelled as sparks crackled around her fingers as she started beating on the hand that held her.

"Hang on, Daisuke!" Aang called as he soared through the sky as he followed Hei Bai into the burtn section of the forest.

He swooped down and got close to where the girl was and reached his hand out towards her as Ex-Veemon jumped into the sky and beat his powerful wings faster to get to his human.

Just as Aang grabbed onto Daisuke's hand, Hei Bai then faded away, pulling the girl into an invisible portal along with him and the sudden movement caused Aang to lose his balance as he fell to the ground.

"NO!" Ex-Veemon shouted with wide scarlet eyes.

(In the Spirit World...)

Groaning, Daisuke slowly felt herself awakening from her sleep that had suddenly befallen her.

Her eyes fluttered open and she found herself being blinded by a bright light and whined in discomfort as she brought her hand up to cover her eyes.

"Aw, man. Is it morning already?" she moaned.

Moving her arm away from her eyes, she looked up into the sky as her eyes adjusted to the light and she was confused to see that she wasn't in the village.

"Where am I?" she asked as she stood up.

Remembering what had happened before she fell unconcious, her eyes went wide in shock and worry for her friends filled her.

"Veemon! Katara? Aang? Sokka!" she called as she started walking through the forest.

Hearing rustling in the bushes, the girl turned to the direction where it had come from.

"Momo, is that you?" she called hoping to see the lemur-bat pop out.

Instead, a strange purple colored blob shot out of the bushes and flew around the girl making her cry out in shock.

"What is this?! Get away from me!" the girl waved her arms around her head to try and get the creature to leave.

Diving to the ground, the girl rolled away from the creature and jumped to her feet as she started running through the forest.

"Veemon, where are you?!" she called for her partner.

As she ran through the forest, she then found that the creature was no longer chasing her and then she stopped her trek.

"Man, what the heck was that thing?" she whispered.

Taking a look around her, Daisuke smiled at the beautiful plants all around her and she felt incredible energy all around her.

It was similar to that of the pillar of light that came from the iceberg when Aang was released.

"This place is amazing." she breathed out in awe.

As she continued along, she saw strange creatures poking their heads out of bushes and trees to stare at her.

A deer creature with a cat's head and paws then approached her and purred as it rubbed its head against her face making her laugh.

"Hey! Aren't you a friendly fella?" she smiled as she scratched the deer-cat's head.

Chuckling was then heard making the girl look over to see an old man with shoulder length white hair and a beard walk over towards her.

He had gold colored eyes and was dressed in red clothing which she realized made this man a Firebender.

"Mula's always been friendly to everyone he meets." the man smiled kindly.

The deer-cat raised his head at hearing his name being called and then he trotted over to the man and rubbed against him.

"Um, hi. Who are you?" the girl asked.

"I'm Wan." the man smiled as a tall creature that appeared to be a ring tailed lemur wearing clothing walked over.

"What? A human? What's a human doing here?" the creature asked.

He then rushed over to the girl and sniffed at her cautiously, trying to determine whether or not she was a threat.

The creature detected the scent of wild flowers from the girl along with the scent of a human.

"Aye-Aye, leave her alone. She means no harm to us." Wan told his friend.

"Yeah, and how do we know that? The last time we were around humans, it was an all out war!" Aye-Aye exclaimed.

"Hey! Not all humans are bad!" Daisuke exclaimed as she placed her hands on her hips.

Wan chuckled as he shook his head in amusement as he then walked over to the girl and the creature.

"This girl is good, my friend. After all, she travels with the lastest Avatar." Wan informed making the girl's eyes grow wide.

"How did you know about that?" Daisuke asked as she narrowed her eyes supisciously at the man.

"Because young one, I was the very first Avatar." Wan informed.

Daisuke gasped in shock at this news as her eyes grew wide while the rest of the creatures came out of hiding and gathered around Wan.

"You? You're the first Avatar? I didn't know the first Avatar was a Firebender." the girl said.

"I suppose not. Hei Bai accidentally brought you to the oasis of the Spirit World. I'm afraid you can't go back home until Aang reasons with him. Come along. You can stay with us for the time being." Wan held out a hand to the girl.

Staring at the hand, Daisuke's chocolate eyes then met the gold eyes of the original Avatar and saw nothing but kindness reflected in them.

Smiling, she placed her hand in his and allowed the man to escort her through the Spirit World while the other creatures that she now knew were spirits followed them.

Aye-Aye sighed as he then trudged after them, unsure if this girl could be trusted, but he trusted Wan's judgement.

Wan led Daisuke to a wide open space of land that was surrounded with different colored flowers which made her smile in awe at the sight.

A large white dragon was curled up around a tree filled with sweet looking fruit as it slept.

Hearing footsteps, the dragon's pink eyes opened and he lifted his massive head to see his friends and a newcomer walking over to him.

"Easy now. This is Daisuke, she's a Firebender and a friend." Wan assured.

Nodding in satisfaction, the dragon settled down once again as the girl watched him in fasination.

"How did you know my name and that I'm a Firebender?" Daisuke asked the old man.

Wan picked a fruit from the tree and handed the large red fruit to the girl who accepted with a curious look.

"I've been dead for almost 10, 000 years. I need something to do with my time." Wan shrugged as he took a bite out of his fruit.

"Yeah, I guess." she shrugged at that.

Looking down at the fruit that reminded her of a pomegrant, she took a hesitant bite since she wasn't fond of this type of fruit.

She was plesantly surprised to find that the fruit was actually a very large plum, but the skin of the fruit was red instead of the usual purple.

The white haired Firebender smiled at the girl when he saw her whole face light up as he continued eating his own fruit.

Perking her lips in thought, the mahogany haired girl then turned her attention to the old man as a thought kept swirling around in her mind.

"Hey, Wan, I was wondering, how did you become the Avatar? When I asked my grandparents, they told me they didn't know how the Avatar cycle started." the girl said as she tilted her head to the side.

Wan chuckled in amusement as he sat with his legs crossed as the spirits all started playing or eating themselves.

Even the Aye-Aye Spirit was enjoying himself as he spoke to one of the plant spirits.

"Ah, now that is an interesting story. Come, sit." Wan patted the grass beside him.

Eager to learn the history of the Avatar, Daisuke bounced over to his side and sat down beside Wan making him smile fondly at the young girl.

"Now, this is the story of how I became the first Avatar..." Wan began.

"Living in poverty my whole life, I stole to survive and to feed my friends, Jaya and Yao. The people I chose to steal from were the Chous, a very spoiled and rich family. It was that day though when the Chou brothers caught me and took back the sack of food I stole, that I devised a plan to better our lives." Wan said.

Daisuke stared at the man as she listened to every word he spoke, entranced.

"The next day I joined a group of hunters that were preparing to leave the city and search for food in the Spirit Wild." Wan informed.

"The Spirit Wild? What's that?" Daisuke asked.

"The Spirit Wild was a forest that was filled with wild spirits. Everyone was frightened to venture off into the forest in fear of being cursed by the spirits. Yao had angered a spirit and was cursed to have a half-man, half-tree appearance." Wan shook his head in memory.

"But if everyone was scared to go there, why did they? I mean, did they have some way to protect themselves?" the young Firebender asked.

"In fact, we did. You see, back then, our nations all lived on the backs of lion turtles. The lion turtle that our city was built on top of had the ability to bless us with the power of Firebending." Wan smiled when he saw the girl's eyes grow wide in shock and amazement.

"So, our Bending comes from a lion turtle?" she asked.

"Yes, but we weren't allowed to keep it. The lion turtle only gave us the power for the summer so that we could gather our food. When winter came, we had to give it back." Wan explained.

"But I thought that Bending was genetic." the girl said in confusion.

"It is now, but back then, it was a temperary way to protect ourselves. Now then, while in the forest, I pretended to be frightened to hunt, so the leader demanded I leave and give my fire back to the lion turtle." Wan continued with his story.

"But you didn't." Daisuke stated as she stared into his gold eyes that were filled with mischief.

"No, I didn't. I went back to the city and inspired others to band together to rob from the Chou family. We needed the food more than they did. People were starving while they lived a life in luxery. The raid was a success, but then the Chous called in their guards. I stayed to fight them off while I told the others to run. I was caught and was brought to the lion turtle. I was banished to the Spirit Wild, but the lion turtle allowed me to keep my fire." Wan explained.

"They just banished you? But why?" Daisuke asked.

"Because I missused the power I was given." Wan told her.

"Yeah, but the lion turtle still let you keep your Firebending. There had to be a reason for that." she insisted.

"Because I begged to keep it. I needed a way to protect myself and I did indeed need it. I was attacked by spirits, nearly eaten by plants and got chased by crazed insects. I was so scared for my life, that I stayed awake the entire night!" Wan chuckled at the memories.

"In the morning, I found an oasis where a group of spirits were gathering for food and water. Hungry and exhausted, I went to join in, but was stopped by the Aye-Aye Spirit." Wan said.

The two Firebenders then looked over to where Aye-Aye was sitting and the creature looked over at them, giving a two fingered salute in greeting.

"He wouldn't allow me into the oasis simply because I was a human. I tried to reason with him, but he still wouldn't allow it, so I attacked with Firebending, but he easily knocked me down. I dressed up, pretending to be a bush spirit to be allowed in, but the Aye-Aye could smell that I was human. When I told everyone I was banished, the spirits told me to find the other lion turtle cities." the First Avatar said as he shifted his weight.

"After I left the oasis, I then found Mula here trapped in a net." Wan petted the cat-deer who purred at the attention.

"I at first wanted to eat him, but my kind nature insisted that I free him. At that moment however, the hunting party arrived. I used Firebending to protect the cat-deer and even used the tricks in the forest that attacked me to attack them. It was the Aye-Aye though who saved me from them and scared them off. After that day, I decided to live with the spirits. For two years I protected my new friends and mastered Firebending." Wan said.

Glancing at the white dragon resting behind him he smiled at the beautiful beast.

"I mastered my skills further by copying the movements of a dragon. My fire then became an extension of my body, not just a tool." the man turned back to the girl in front of him.

Lifting his hand up, he poked her forehead making her close her eyes in irritating at the sudden act.

"You'll learn that soon enough." he said making her eyes go wide.

He knew that she was having problems with her Firebending.

"When two years had passed, Mula and I set off to travel to the other lion turtle cities. While on our journey, we found two massive spirits fighting. They were scaring the creatures around them and causing destruction, so I tried to reason with them to stop. The female spirit, Raava, told me to leave since the battle didn't consern me. The male spirit, Vaatu, then begged me to help him. He said that Raava had kept him imprisoned for 10, 000 years and so I helped him to escape." Wan sighed.

"Please don't tell me you accidentally released a powerful, destructive force of evil on the world." Daisuke frowned at him.

At the guilty wide toothed grin the Avatar gave her, the girl slapped her forehead in disbelief.

"Idiot!" she muttered making him laugh.

"Raava is the spirit of Light and Vaatu is the spirit of Darkness. Every 10, 000 years when the harmonic convergence arrives, they are destined to battle for the sake of the world. If Vaatu wins, then the world will be encased in darkness and discord for 10, 000 years until the next harmonic convergence where Raava will fight him again. It's a never ending cycle. I offered Raava to help her, but she denied it and left. Mula and I continued on our journey and we then found the Airbenders. They were frightened because they had never seen a Firebender before. I was amazed to see that they could fly and their city was hovering in the sky on the back of a lion turtle. I made a catapult with a tree and some rope to get over to the city and while there, I met with the Airbenders to talk to them, but then Vaatu arrived and turned all the friendly spirits evil. They started attacking everyone, so I used my Firebending to save them. Raava arrived, but she was smaller and weaker than before. The stronger Vaatu grew, the weaker she got. She managed to knock him down and he left, but it was then that I made my choice. We went to the lion turtle of the Air Nomads and asked him to give me Airbending to help Raava. After that, Raava and I started training with Airbending and then we went to the Water Tribe to receive Waterbeding and finally, we went to the Earth Kingdom to get Earthbending." Wan explained.

"Wait! The order you got the elements; that's the Avatar cycle!" Daisuke realized.

Smiling at the girl, Wan nodded his consent before he then continued on with his story.

"A year later I mastered all the elements, but Raava and I found trouble. Some people from my city were being led by Jaya and they were attacking the spirits with Firebending. They thought all spirits were evil and attacked them just for being near them. I tried to resolve the matter peacefully, but Vaatu arrived and transformed the Aye-Aye and the other spirits into evil creatures. Raava and I then merged to stop the fight and I was able to use all four elements at once." Wan said.

"The Avatar State. When you and Raava merged, you went into the Avatar State didn't you?" Daisuke asked him in wonderment.

"Yes, I did. But if she had stayed any longer, then I would have died. You see, a spirit can possess a human, but it puts a strain on their bodies. Two spirits can't house one body at the same time. Sadly, the destruction was done and Raava was very weak. I carried her to the South Pole where the portal to the Spirit World was opened. It was the day of the Harmonic Convergence and Raava couldn't fight Vaatu or else she'd be killed. So I faught in her place, using everything I've learned to battle Vaatu. Raava then merged our energies, but if she didn't leave my body, then I would die. I didn't care though. I wouldn't allow Vaatu to rule the world and destroy everything. Then, a miracle happened. When I touched the lights from the portal, Raava and I became one single entity. We became the First Avatar and using the Avatar State, we defeated Vaatu and sealed him in the Tree of Time in the Spirit World and subsequently closed the Nothern portal in order to prevent any human from ever physically entering the Spirit World and releasing him. The spirits were then guided back to their own world and I sealed the Southern portal as well so that the bridge between the two worlds would be closed to keep the balance." Wan said.

"And the lion turtles never took away the Bending from the humans they gave them too." Daisuke stated.

"Exactly. Those Benders then had children who inherited their powers. And that is how Bending was created. For years I worked hard to maintain the balance of the world and tried to get others to co-exist peacefully, but I failed. My vow was that I would use Raava's light to guide the world toward peace and she made it so that I could carry on my mission and that we would be together forever." Wan closed his eyes.

"Your spirit was reborn into the next nation. It was Raava's power that allowed you to continue your mission by being reborn after one of your lives dies." Daisuke said.

Wan nodded at this as he opened his eyes and stared down at the girl with a sift smile.

"You're afraid of your Bending aren't you?" he asked making her eyes go wide.

"Well, I... Where I came from, Bending was banned for 162 years. Everyone can now Bend in peace without anyone judging them, but here...I can't let anyone know I'm a Firebender or else they'd stare at me as if I were evil. But I've been trying to get over that to help everyone, but I still can't create fire of my own." Daisuke stared down at her hands sadly.

Sighing, Wan grabbed her hands making the girl look up at him and watched as flames appeared around their hands and circled around them.

"Fire is not destruction or death. It's life and light. The Fire Nation have forgotten about the great will of fire." Wan said.

"The will of fire?" Daisuke asked as Wan pulled his hands away and the flames faded.

"You should know what it is. After all, you've used your will of fire before to protect your friends and encouraged everyone to work together to defeat the evils of your world. You just need to ignite that spark inside yourself and turn it into fire." Wan smiled.

Staring down at her hands, Daisuke took in a deep breath and focused on creating a flame by thinking of her battles she had faced in the past and remembered everything she felt.

The fear, confusion, joy, sadness, hate, happiness, love and courage.

But mostly, what she felt was her desire to protect everyone around her.

Suddenly, a ball of gold fire sparked to life in her right hand making her gasp in shock while the Avatar remained calm.

"I-I did it." Daisuke blinked as she lifted her hand and the flame moved like a stream of water.

Jumping to her feet, she moved the gold colored flame around her body, coiling around her like a dancing dragon.

It made Wan smile at the girl when he saw the awe and wonder in her eyes as she danced with the fire.

She was like a child learning Firebending for the first time and he knew that she would become stronger if she kept training and found a Firebender who was kind enough to teach her the basics.

"Eh, I've seen better." Aye-Aye commented making the girl stop her dance with the fire floating above her outstretched hands and she stuck her tongue out Aye-Aye and he frowned as he blew a raspberry at her.

Roaring was then heard making the girl gasp and her flame faded away as she whirled around, staring at the spirit that had brougth her here.

"Hei Bai!" she gasped.

She was stunned when the creature then transformed into a large and kind looking panda bear that grunted at her.

"It seems that Aang has calmed Hei Bai. He is here to bring you home." Wan smiled as he stood up and walked beside the girl.

"Oh. Well, I guess it's time to go. Veemon must be going out of his mind in worry." Daisuke smiled fondly at the thought of her dragon.

She then started walking over to Hei Bai, but stopped when she suddenly thougth of something.

Turning, she then ran off towards Wan and wrapped her arms around the man, stunning him at the sudden contact.

"Thanks for all your help." she said.

Smiling softly, the First Avatar placed a hand on top of her head and gave her an affectionate pat like a grandfather would give his grandchild.

"Take this knowledge with you and do good things with it." he told her.

Nodding, Daisuke then pulled out of the hug and smiled up at the man and to the spirits that had gathered around Wan.

"Bye everyone!" she called as she ran towards Hei Bai as she waved at them.

The spirits all waved at the girl as she placed a hand on Hei Bai's back as the panda lead her into a portal that had opened up.

Aye-Aye rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he watched Hei Bai and Daisuke vanish into the portal.

"You know, that girl kind of reminds me of you, Stinky." Aye-Aye said to Wan who laughed at his friend's words.

"I don't know if that's a good thing or not. What I do know is, I have faith in that girl. She's special." Wan smiled.

"I'll take your word for it. But I'll only believe it when I see it." Aye-Aye said as he shrugged and walked off.

(In the Human Realm...)

Suddenly, Hei Bai and Daisuke walked out of the forest making the villagers, Aang, Katara, Sokka and Ex-Veemon turn to see them.

Looking at the crowd of happy people who were welcoming back their family and friends, Daisuke smiled at them all.

"Miss me?" she joked.

"DAISUKE!" Ex-Veemon cried as he surged forward and scooped the girl up into his arms, hugging her close to his chest.

"Thanks, Hei Bai!" Aang called as the panda then grunted and faded off into the ofrest.

"Ex-Veemon, you're smothering me!" Daisuke gagged as she tried to escape the fierce hug she was trapped in.

"Oh! Sorry." the dragon grinned as he set his partner down on her feet.

"Daisuke!" Katara smiled as she rushed over and pulled her friend into a hug.

Sokka and Aang joined in on the hug, happy to have their group back together.

"You were trapped in the Spirit World for twenty-four hours. How do you feel?" Katara asked.

"Awesome! You are never gonna believe what happened to me!" Daisuke bounced in place as she exuberated energy.

"You found us food?" Sokka asked hopefully.

"No. Well, yeah, but that's not it. Check this out." Daisuke grinned as she turned away from the forest and looked off to the side.

Her friends all watched her curiously as she took in a breath and lifted her arms gracefully and then thrusted her palm out towards the sky.

To their awe, golden colored flames flowed out of her palm in a wave before they then faded into the winds.

"I can finally create my own fire!" the Firebender bounced over to her friends.

"That's amazing! But how did you learn?" Katara asked.

"I met someone who understands the true meaning of Firebending and he helped me." Daisuke smiled.

"Wait, you were with a spirit? And he was a Firebender?" Aang asked in exictement.

The girl nodded and her cheeks started to hurt from smiling so much, but she couldn't help it!

Then, the group found the village leader walking over to the group to speak with them.

"Thank you, Avatar. If only there were a way to repay you for what you've done." the man smiled gratefully.

"You could give us supplies and some money." Sokka suggested.

"Sokka!" Katara chided her brother.

"What? We need supplies." Sokka pouted.

"It would be an honor to help you prepare for your journey." the leader smiled with a bow as he then walked off to gather the supplies.

"I'm so proud of you, Aang. You figured out what to do, all on your own." Katara placed a hand on the boy's shoulder as he smiled bashfully.

"Actually, I did have a little help. And there's something else." Aang then grew serious.

"What is it?" Sokka asked.

"We're not gonna like this are we?" Ex-Veemon asked.

"I need to talk to Roku and I think I found a way to contact his spirit." Aang explained.

"That's great!" Katara said eagerly while Ex-Veemon and Daisuke nodded with smiles.

"Creepy, but great." Sokka agreed.

"There's a temple on a crescent shaped island and if I go there on the solstice, I'll be able to speak with him." Aang told his friends.

"But the solstice is tomorrow!" Katara exclaimed as she and the others appeared worried.

"Yeah and there's one more problem... The island is in the Fire Nation." the Avatar said nervously.

Ex-Veemon, Sokka, Katara and Daisuke's jaws all dropped at this news, wary of going into enemy territory.

"I knew I wasn't gonna like this." Ex-Veemon groaned as he hung his head and his partner patted his head.

To be continued...


	10. The Winter Solstice part 2

"The Winter Solstice part 2"

**Please enjoy and review!**

The moon was beginning to leave the sky as dawn approached while Daisuke, Veemon, Katara and Sokka walked outside to search for Aang who was missing.

Veemon's ears twitched when he heard the familiar groan of Appa and he ran ahead, leading the group over to where the six legged bison was located.

Aang was there as well pulling on his reins, trying to force the large creature to leave the island, but Appa was refusing.

"Let's go, Appa! Come on, boy!" Aang grunted as he tugged on the reins.

Appa simply growled in protest making the Airbender look at him sadly.

"Look, I'm sorry but Katara, Daisuke, Veemon and Sokka aren't coming to the Fire Nation with us. If they got hurt, I'd never forgive myself. So get your big butt off the ground and let's go!" Aang cried out as he pulled on the reins.

"I think his big butt is trying to tell ya something." Sokka drawled making the boy freeze as he looked over to where the group was standing.

"See, I told ya he was gonna try and ditch us." Daisuke placed a hand on her hip.

"How rude." Veemon clicked his tongue as he wagged a disaproving finger at the 12 year old.

"Please don't go, Aang. The world can't afford to lose you to the Fire Nation. Neither can I." Katara begged.

"But I have to talk to Avatar Roku to find out what my vision means! I need to get to the Fire Temple before the sun sets on the solstice!" Aang told them.

He then used his Airbender to lift himself up onto his bison's head.

"That's today!" he reminded.

Frowning at the boy; Daisuke, Veemon, Sokka and Katara then rushed to stand in front of the bison before their friend took off.

"We're not letting you go into the Fire Nation, Aang." Katara said firmly.

"At least, not without your friends. We got your back." Sokka smiled as Momo climbed onto Aang's shoulders.

Appa then licked Sokka, making the Water Tribe boy cringe at the slobber that covered his body.

"Ew!" he whined.

The village leader then walked over to the group as Sokka tried to shake the slobber off his body with Daisuke and Veemon giggling at him.

"It's a long journey to Crescent Island." he said as he handed the buddle he was carrying to Daisuke.

The villagers had learned that she was a Firebender, but had seen her kind nature and had accepted her since the Avatar trusted her.

"You'll have to fly fast to have any chance of making it before sundown. Good luck." the leader smiled.

Sokka, Katara, Veemon and Daisuke all climbed into the saddle while the man was speaking as Aang looked down at the man.

"Thank you for your-" Aang was cut off.

"Go!" the man snapped as he pointed towards the ocean.

"Appa, yip-yip!" Aang snapped the reins and the bison shot off into the air.

The sun then started to rise as Appa continued to soar through the air and while everyone blocked their eyes from the harsh light, but Daisuke was soaking it up like a sponge.

Appa then flew higher into the clouds, but his pace wasn't fast enough for Aang's liking.

"C'mon boy, we've got a long way to go. Faster!" Aang encouraged and Appa groaned as he flapped his tail and his speed picked up.

"Aang, we've got trouble!" Katara called as she peered over the side of the saddle.

"Yeah! And it's gaining fast!" Sokka yelped.

"Prince Attitude Problem is back." Veemon quipped as everyone looked behind them to see the metal ship chasing after them.

They watched as what appeared to be a metal catapult rose onto the deck and whom they assumed to be Zuko lit a rock on fire and it was then catapulted at the bison.

"Fireball!" Katara yelled.

"I'm on it!" Aang said as he pulled at the reigns making Appa tilt to the side to avoid the fireball that sailed by them.

"We have to get out of Zuko's range before he shoots another hot stinker at us." Katara said as Aang's face scrunched up at the stench of the fireball.

"Can't you make Appa go any faster?" Sokka asked.

"Yeah, but there's just one little problem." Aang said as he stared ahead.

"You mean besides Zuko?" Daisuke asked as she looked down at the ocean in front of them.

Her eyes grew wide at the sight of the Fire Navy ships that were blocking their path, each one equiped with a catapult.

"If we fly North, we can go around the Fire Nation ships and avoid the blockade. It's the only way." Aang said as he turned to his friends.

"There's no time!" Katara said.

"This is exactly why I didn't want you to come. It's too dangerous." Aang retorted.

"Oh, so letting you come alone was a good idea? You'd be way too outnumbered! The Fire Nation would've taken you out like that." Daisuke said as she snapped her fingers.

"Face it, Airhead, you're not invincible. You need our help." Veemon told him.

"And that's exactly why we're here." Katara said.

"Let's run this blockade." Sokka smirked.

"Appa, yip-yip!" Aang called making Appa growl as he then surged forward.

The Fire Navy then launched the fireballs at the group making everyone scream as Appa started swerving to evade them.

Everyone clung to the saddle so they wouldn't fall off from the crooked twists and were blinded by the fireballs exploding in front of them.

Flames were left on Appa's fur and started to burn him so Momo, Veemon, Sokka, Daisuke and Katara all started patting the flames out.

"Appa, are you okay?" Aang asked and the bison growled in answer.

Turning her head to the side, Daisuke was stunned to see that Zuko and Iroh's ship was also being asaulted by the fireballs.

"They're attacking their own allies." she whispered.

Another round of fireballs was then launched at Appa making everyone cry out as one shot up right in front of the bison and Aang pulled on the reigns to swerve sharply to the side.

Appa growled as he tried to fly away from the attacks, but the smoke was making it difficult for him to see.

Just then, two fireballs exploded in front of him and Sokka then fell out of the saddle making everyone yell.

"Sokka!" Aang yelled.

"Veemon!" Daisuke cried out as her dragon nodded and jumped out of the saddle as blue light covered his body.

"Veemon digivolve too...EX-VEEMON!"

As Sokka drew closer to the water, Ex-Veemon swooped in and grabbed the boy around the waist and flew upwards towards the sky, the beat of his wings creating ripples in the water.

As a fireball came hurtling towards them, Ex-Veemon lifted Sokka onto his shoulder and used his V Laser on the fireball, making it explode as the dragon then continued towards the bison.

As one fireball came close to Appa, Aang jumped off the bison's head and kicked at the fireball, sending out a blast of air that shattered the fireball.

The remaining debris from the fireball started to hit Aang and he flew back into Appa as Katara and Daisuke grabbed his shoulders to steady him.

Ex-Veemon and Appa then safely flew through the blockade into calmer waters.

"We made it!" Aang cheered.

"We got into the Fire Nation. Great." Sokka said less enthusiastically as he rode on Ex-Veemon's back beside the bison.

"Get over it." Ex-Veemon drawled as he hovered above Appa and shrugged the young warrior off his back.

Sokka yelped as he fell into the saddle beside the girls as Ex-Veemon glowed yellow and returned to his Rookie form.

Everyone then settled back as Appa soared through the sky towards the island, but weren't sure where it was loacted.

Hours passed and the sun sunk in the sky turning it pink and orange as the group of humans and Digimon were close to falling asleep.

Daisuke was on her back while Veemon was using her stomach as a pillow as he snored away, Sokka and Katara were leaning against the saddle slumped over and Aang was leaning forward on the bison's head as Momo was lying on his master's head.

Just then, Momo perked up when he saw something and started jumping on Aang's head making the boy look over.

"There it is! The island where Roku's dragon took me." Aang announced making the others wake up and lift themselves up.

Moving over to the front of the saddle, the group looked down at the island and saw that it was in the shape of a crescent and had a temple on it along with an active volcano.

Appa then flew down towards the island and landed at the base of a stone bridge that led up to the temple.

"You did it, buddy!" Aang exclaimed as he hugged Appa's head.

"Nice flying." Veemon said as he lifted his fist up.

Seeing this, Appa lazily lifted his paw and bumped it against the dragon's, a trick that Veemon had been teaching him and Momo for the last few days.

Bellowing in satisfaction, the bison rolled onto his side, ready to take a nap.

"Oh, you poor baby." Daisuke cooed as she scratched the bison's chin.

"You must be tired." Katara cooed as she rubbed the bison's stomach.

"No, I'm good. Refreshed and ready to fight some Firebenders!" Sokka said as he stretched out and then ran in place.

The two girls then frowned over at him as they placed their hands on their hips.

"We were talking to Appa." Daisuke and Katara deadpanned making the boy stop his exercise.

"Well, I was talking to Momo." Sokka said as he gestured over to Momo who was hanging from a branch and looked over when his name was called.

"Sure, you were." Veemon drawled sarcastically.

(A few minutes later...)

"I don't see any guards. The Fire Nation must have abadoned the temple when Roku died." Sokka commented as he, Katara, Daisuke, Aang, Momo and Veemon walked up the steps towards the temple.

"Guys, it's almost sundown." Daisuke pointed to the sky that was turning orange.

"We better hurry!" Aang called as he started running to the door and everyone followed after him.

When they entered the temple, they quietly tip-toed through the red chambers to search for the room that the dragon had shown Aang.

"Wait. I think I heard something." Sokka whispered making everyone stop.

As the group turned around to check, they froze when they spotted a group of old men standing behind them dressed in red robes and wore tall hats.

"We are the Fire Sages. Guardians of the temple of the Avatar." the man standing in front of the other four men stated.

"Great, I'm the Avatar!" Aang smiled as he walked forward.

"We know." the lead Sage said as he then inhaled and punched a blast of fire at the four teenagers.

Daisuke gasped as she jumped forward and thrusted her palm out, redirecting the flame into the wall and stunned the Sages stunned that a Firebender was with the Avatar.

"Okay, now would be a good time to run." she said as the five Sages all then blasted flames at the group and Aang jumped forward and used his Airbending to blast the flames back at the men.

"I'll hold them off. Run!" Aang called and the others started running down the hallway.

As the group ran down the hallway, they were stunned to see Aang jump out in front of them.

"Follow me!" he shouted as he started running and the others followed.

"Do you know where you're going?" Sokka asked as he, Daisuke, Katara and Veemon rushed after him.

"Nope!" Aang shouted back as he turned a corner, but skidded to a stop as he then turned around and ran.

"Wrong way!" he yelled which confused the otehrs until they saw one of the Sages step out from around the corner and they all ran in the opposite direction.

"Come back!" the Sage called as he chased after the group.

The group then turned another corner and charged down the hall with the Airbender leading them, but then eveyrone skidded to a stop when they found they had reached a deadend.

As they spun around to leave, they found themselves trapped when the Sage that chased after them was now blocking off their path.

"I don't want to fight you. I am a friend." the Sage held his hands up in a peaceful manner.

"Firebenders aren't our friends!" Sokka snapped as he stepped up beside Aang.

"Hey!" Daisuke snapped as she shot him a glare.

"Except Daisuke." Sokka relented as he tilted his head at the girl.

The Fire Sage then stepped up in front of the Airbender and dropped to his hands and knees in a bow which stunned the group.

"I know why you're here, Avatar." the Sage said as he remained bowing.

"You do?" Aang asked.

"Yes. You wish to speak to Avatar Roku. I can take you to him." the Sage said as he stood up.

"What? Wait, just who the heck are you?" Daisuke asked as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"I am Shyu, young Firebender." the Sage nodded in greeting to the girl.

His eyes then strayed to the dragon standing at her side and wondered how it was possible that these creatures were still alive.

Shaking the thought from his mind, he then walked over to where a lamp was and he slid it back as the others watched his curiously as he placed his palm on the wall as he focussed the heat from his hand in that spot and a secrect passage then opened up.

"This way will lead you to Avatar Roku." Shyu informed as he walked into the passage.

The group hesitated, unsure if they should trust the man in case he was leading them into a trap.

"Time is running out. Quickly!" Shyu called and the group then decided to head inside and once they were all in, Shyu closed the passage behind them.

"Avatar Roku once called this temple his home. He formed these secret passages out of the magma." Shyu explained as he led the group to a staircase.

"Whoa." Daisuke exclaimed as she looked at the red walls.

"Can all Firebenders control magma?" Veemon asked the Sage who was surprised to hear the dragon speak.

"With years of training, they could. But some thought that Avatar Roku used Earthbending to control the magma." he answered.

"Did you know Avatar Roku?" Aang then asked.

"No, but my grandfather knew him. Many generations of Fire Sages guarded this Fire Temple long before me. We have a strong spiritual connection to this place." Shyu explained.

"Is that how you knew I was coming?" Aang asked.

"A few weeks ago, an amazing thing occurred. The statue of Avatar Roku; its eyes began to glow!" Shyu said as the group started climbing the stairs.

"That's when we were at the Air Temple. Avatar Roku's eyes were glowing there too!" Katara spoke up.

"At that moment, we knew you had returned to the world." Shyu said.

"If this is the Avatar's temple, why did the Sages attack me?" Aang asked.

"Things have changed. In the past, the Sages were loyal only tot he Avatar. When Roku died, the Sages eagerly awaited for the next Avatar to return. But he never came." Shyu said sadly.

"They were waiting for me." Aang stopped walking as he looked down guiltily.

"Hey, don't feel bad. You're only a hundred years late." Sokka placed his hand on the boy's shoulder.

Aang then scowled at the older boy as Veemon slapped a hand over his face as the two females in the group glared at the young warrior.

"Human boys are dumb. Nothing can change my mind about this." Veemon muttered as the group continued walking.

"They lost hope the Avatar would ever return. When Fire Lord Sozin began the war, my grandfather and the other Sages were forced to follow him. I never wanted to serve the Fire Lord. When I learned you were coming, I knew I would betray the other Sages." Shyu explained.

This made Daisuke smile as she realized that there were some Firebenders who still had the will of fire that Avatar Wan had spoke of.

"Thank you for helping me." Aang said sincerely making Shyu smile at the boy happily as the group continued to walk through the chamber.

They then reached a set of stairs that spiraled high aove them to the room where Roku's statue was located.

"We'll follow these stairs to the sanctuary." Shyu said.

(Later on...)

"Once you're inside, wait for the light to hit Avatar Roku's statue. Only then will you be able to speak with him." Shyu explained as the group walked up the never endign staircase.

When they finally reached the top, Shyu then slid back a tile and looked around cautiously and then he climbed out and into a large room with masisve columns with dragon statues on top of them and a large door that had five dragons with their mouths open.

The group then followed the Sage over to the door, but the man then gasped in horror.

"No!" he cried confusing the group as they looked at him.

"Shyu, what's wrong?" Aang asked as he apprached the door.

"The sanctuary doors, they are closed!" Shyu exclaimed.

Aang then pulled on the doors to try and open them, but they were sealed shut much to his dismay.

"Can't you just open them with Firebending? Like you opened that other door?" Katara asked the Sage.

"No. Only a fully realized Avatar is powerful enough to open this door alone. Otherwise, the Sages must open this door together with five simultaneous fire blasts." Shyu shook his head sadly.

"Five fire blasts, huh?" Sokka inquiered as he then looked at the lamps and he grinned as an idea came to him.

"I think I can help you out." he informed.

Everyone then gave him confused looks, wondering what he meant by that.

(A few minutes later...)

Everyone watched as Sokka as he poured lamp oil into a bag.

"This is a little trick I picked up from my father. I seal the lamp oil inside an animal skin casing, Shyu lights the oil-soaked twine and ta-da! Fake Firebending!" Sokka said as he tied off the bag.

"You've really outdone yourself this time, Sokka." Katara said in an impressed tone.

"Yeah. Who knew you were smart?" Veemon shrugged making the boy scowl.

Sokka then stood up as he placed the oil filled bags into the mouths of the dragon statues.

"This might actually work." Shyu murmured with a small spark of hope.

"The Sages will hear the explosion. So as soon as they go off, you rush in." Shyu instructed Aang once the bags were all set into the statues.

Katara held Momo while Veemon jumped onto Daisuke's back as the two girls hid behind a colum that was in front of the door.

"It's almost sunset. Are you ready?" the Waterbender asked the Airbender who was hiding behind another colum as Sokka rushed over to hide and plugged his ears.

"Definnitely." Aang nodded as Shyu sent a blast of fire from his finger and it lit the twine as the flame burned and crawled up the twine.

Shyu then rushed behind a pillar and hid when the flame finally reached the bags and then five exploisons went off making everyone jump slightly at the sound and smoke filled the room.

Taking his chance, Aang rushed through the smoke towards the door and yanked on them, but they were sealed shut.

"It's still locked!" he called to the others.

"It didn't work." Shyu stated sadly as everyone walked over as Aang fell to his knees in defeat.

Standing up and feeling frustraded, Aang then started banging on the door with blasts of air as the others stood back and watched.

"Why. Won't. It. Open?" the boy shouted as the air also blew back at the other occupants of the room.

"Aang! Stop!" Katara said as she grabbed his arm to stop his relentless and useless attacks on the door.

"There's nothing else we can do." she told him.

"I'm sorry I put you through all this for nothing." Aang apologized to his friends.

"Hey. You didn't make us do anything. We came because we wanted too." Daisuke smiled comfortingly at the boy.

"Although, it may not have been a good idea considering the current circumstances." Veemon shrugged making his partner bop him over the head.

"I don't get it. That blast looked as strong as any Firebending I've seen." Sokka stood in front of the door as he touched the soot that was left on the door from the blast.

"Sokka, you're a genius!" Katara suddenly exclaimed making everyone look at her in confusion.

"He is?" Daisuke and Veemon asked.

"Wait. How is Sokka a genius? His plan didn,t even work." Aang said with a confused expression.

"Come on, Aang. Let her dream." Sokka quipped.

"You're right. Sokka's plan didn't work, but it looks like it did." Katara explained possitively.

Veemon, Daisuke, Aang and Sokka shared a look before they then stared at the girl with looks of disbelief.

"Did the definition of genius change over the last hundred years?" Aang asked.

"Maybe." Daisuke shrugged as Katara rubbed her chin with a sly smile and Shyu looked at the teenagers with a curious look.

(Later...)

"Come quickly! The Avatar has entered the sanctuary!" Shyu yelled as he led the other four Sages to the doors.

"How did he get in?" the lead Sage demanded and Shyu shrugged at him.

"I don't know. But look at the scorch marks!" Shyu then pointed at the black marks on the floor.

The four Sages then looked down at the scorch marks to observe them, but then gasped when they saw a shadow moving from under the doors.

"He's inside! Open the doors immediately before he contacts Avatar Roku!" the lead Sage ordered.

Unknown to the Sages, Aang was hiding behind a nearby colum, waiting for the doors to be opened as his friends stood by watching.

The Sages then blasted streams of fire into the dragons' mouths on the door and the sound of the lock clicking was heard.

As the opened slowly creaked open, the Sages waited for the Avatar to appear, ready to attack him.

To their surprise, they found a lemur-bat standing in the room as it stared at them innocently.

"It's the Avatar's lemur! He must've crawled through the pipes. We've been tricked!" the lead Sage cried out.

Just then, Momo jumped onto the lead Sage's head and clung to his hat while Katara ran out from behind the pillar and pulled the man's tunic over his head.

Daisuke and Sokka then rushed out and grabbed the robe of one of the Sages' and pulled it up over the man's head to blind him.

Veemon then jumped at one of the men tackled him to the ground, stopping him from helping his companions.

"Now, Aang!" Shyu yelled, but the boy didn't step out of his hiding place.

"Aang, now's your chance!" Katara shouted as she, Veemon, Daisuke and Sokka held the Sages down.

Just then, Zuko stepped out from behind the pillar and had Aang's arms twisted behind his back making everyone stare in shock.

"The Avatar is coming with me!" Zuko declared as he pushed Aang forward and the Sages pinned the three teenagers, Shyu and the dragon to the floor while Momo flew off with the lead Sage's hat.

"Close the doors! Quickly!" Zuko ordered as the group was chained up while he was moving the Avatar over to the secret tile to escape.

Growling in annoyance, Daisuke then looked over as she met eyes with Aang who watched his friends with a worried expression.

Twisting his arms free from the Prince's grasp, Aang then spun himself and Zuko around and kicked the 16 year old down the stairs with a kick of air.

"Aang, hurry! Get to the door! Now!" Daisuke yelled as she saw the boy hesitate.

Nodding, Aang then rushed towards the boy as it started to swing closed and he twisted away from teh flames blasted at him and flipped over the Sages and used the lead Sage's head as a springboard to push himself into the room just as the door slammed shut.

"He made it!" Katara cheered as a flash of light was seen under the door.

Zuko then ran over to the door as he and the four Sages then blasted fire into the dragons' mouths, but the doors remained sealed.

"Why isn't it working? It's sealed shut!" Zuko turned to the Sages with an angered look.

"It must have been the light. Avatar Roku doesn't want us inside." the lead Sage explained.

"Well, he has a good reason for it." Veemon spoke up making everyone look at the dragon.

The Sages all gasped when they took time to notice the creature and realized just what he was and were stunned.

"I mean, ya did just try to kill him. Or Aang. I'm confused. How does reincarnation work?" Veemon asked as he looked over at the Water Tribe siblings, the ex-Sage and the child of Miracles.

Shaking her head in amusement at her partner, the female Firebender then looked up into the narrowed gold eyes of the scarred Prince.

Zuko stared down into Daisuke's eyes, seeing them flashing red as they glared at each other before he then turned his attention to Shyu.

"Why did you help the Avatar?" Zuko questioned the man.

"Because it was once the Sages' duty. It is still our duty." Shyu stated.

Just then, clapping was heard and the Sages, Water Tribe siblings, Prince, dragon and Digidestined turned their attention to the side where the sound had come from.

A man with a top-knot and large sideburns was the one had clapped, but from the look on his face, it revealed that he was being sarcastic.

Standing behind him were six other soldiers.

"What a moving and heartfelt performance." the man mocked with a haughty look on his face.

"I'm certain the Fire Lord will understand when you explain why you betrayed him." he said.

The four Sages then stepped forward and placed their fists on the palms of their others hands as they bowed their heads at the man in respect.

"Commander Zhao." the lead Sage greeted the man.

"And Prince Zuko." the man identified as Zhao ignored the Sages and turned his attention to the Prince who appeared angry at the man's appearance.

"It was a noble effort, but your little smokescreen didn't work. Two traitors in one day. The Fire Lord will be pleased." Zhao smirked as his soldiers then walked up behind Zuko to restrain him.

Zuko's face darkened as he stared at Zhao and the soldiers forced his arms behind his back.

"You're too late, Zhao! The Avatar's inside and the doors are sealed." Zuko snapped as he struggled.

"No matter. Sooner or later, he has to come out." Zhao said as he cast a glance over at the doors.

His eyes then caught something strange and he looked over at the prisoners and was curious by what he was seeing.

"Well, well. What is this?" he smirked as he walked over.

Veemon was being hidden behind Katara and Sokka since they were wearing blue and the color of the dragon's scales would allow him to blend in and hide.

Zhao stopped in front of Daisuke and peered down at the girl who gave him a look of defiance.

"I've never seen hair like this before. How odd." he said as he reached out and picked up a lock of the mahogany hair.

"Where I come from, this is normal." she retorted as she jerked her head back, her hair falling from the man's grip.

"Hmm. And where do you come from? Perhaps the Water Tribe? No, your eyes aren't right." Zhao sneered as he forcefully grabbed her chin and lifted her head up to meet his eyes.

"The Earth Kingdom then? You couldn't possibly be from the Fire Nation. You are dressed strangely. Orange...the color an Airbender wears. Did you return with the Avatar?" he asked.

Veemon wanted to jump out and punch this man for touching his human, but he knew that he needed to stay hidden for the time being.

Sokka and Katara were watching this with worried looks, unsure of what to do to help their friends as she glared heatedly up at the man gripping her face.

Letting go of her chin, Zhao then twisted his hand into the girl's hair, causing her elastic band to snap as the waves of mahogany fell around her shoulders.

"Hey!" Sokka yelped.

"No!" Katara gasped.

"Answer the question, girl! Who are you?" Zhao demanded as he leaned into the girl's face.

Feeling her body heat up, the girl sucked in a deep breath as she felt the chains around her arms begin to melt.

Jerking her head to make her bangs fall out of her eyes, the girl gave the Commander a cheerful smile.

"I'm Daisuke Motomiya. And you're toast." she said.

Yanking her arms apart, the chains snapped and she thrusted her hands forward, sending out a burst of gold fire that pushed Zhao backwards a few feet.

Zuko's eyes grew wide as he stared at the girl, stunned by her strange color of fire.

"You're a Firebender!" Zhao spat as he jumped to his feet.

"Gee, is old age making you dumb?" Daisuke joked as she smirked at the Commander as he glared at the girl.

"You imputent child! How dare you mock me?" Zhao yelled as he took a Firebending stance.

"Simple. I'm a teenager and you're a crabby old man. It's just that easy." Daisuke chirped.

Zuko stared at the girl, wondering if she had any sanity if she was purposly angering Zhao.

Growling, Zhao then punched a stream of flames at the girl and she moved her arms gracefully as she pushed the flames into the wall and she took in a breath as she did so.

Zhao was quick as he charged forward, kicking and punching flames at the girl who then dived to the ground and rolled away from the attacks.

Veemon whimpered as he struggled against his chains in vain to get free so that he could save his partner from the crazed Firebender who was attacking her.

As she was on her back, Daisuke then moved her hands under her shoulders and kicked her legs up as she flipped onto her feet, but then swerved to the side to cartwheel away from a barrage of flames that were shot after her.

"What's wrong, little girl? Can't you fight back? Or don't you know how?" Zhao mocked.

"Maybe I don't wanna waste my time on you." Daisuke sniped back.

Scoffing, Zhao then glanced at three of his men and nodded his head, making them step up beside him.

"Daisuke, watch out!" Katara cried.

The four men then sent out blasts of fire at the girl making her duck behind a pillar and she covered her head as she felt the flames trickle by her.

"Okay, come on. I can do this. I can do this. I'm not afraid any more. Just remember what Wan said. Oh, I'm dead." Daisuke groaned as she peeked out from behind the pillar, only to scream as a soldier jumped at her with a flame blade and she dived to the ground and rolled onto her feet to run away.

Unfortunately, she was trapped between a wall and four well trained Fire Nation soldiers who had all killed before and wouldn't think twice about ending her life.

"No where to run now. You're trapped. Come quietly and you'll be spared." Zhao chided.

"Go jump in a volcano!" Daisuke snapped as she tried to think of a way to escape.

"Have it your way." Zhao sneered as he and his soldiers then took a stance.

"Daisuke, run!" Katara shouted.

"Do something!" Sokka yelled.

"DAISUKE!" Veemon screamed.

Hearing her dragon's voice, Daisuke's eyes then grew wide as she remembered what Wan had told her while she was in the Spirit World.

_"I mastered my skills further by copying the movements of a dragon. My fire then became an extension of my body, not just a tool." _

Eyes falling shut, Daisuke then stepped forward as she took in a deep breath as she sensed for the heat in the room.

"Fire is an extension of my body." she whispered as she lifted her arms.

Just then, Zhao and his soldiers sent four blasts of flames at the girl who sensed out the heat rushing towards her as she continued breathing evenly.

"Fire is not destrucion and death." she whispered as she opened her eyes just as the flames were in front of her.

Thrusting her hands out in front of her, she then felt the flames lick at her flames harmlessly as she then spun her body around fluidly and whipped the wave of fire around her body and sent it surging towards the Fire Nation.

The four men were stunned as they were hit by the flames and were knocked off their feet, rolling on the ground a few feet away.

"Fire is light and life." Daisuke declared as she stood up straighter and more sure of herself.

Veemon, Katara, Sokka and Shyu all smiled at this while Zuko stared off at the female Firebender in wonderment from how easily she had bent the large wave of flame.

He had never seen anything like that before in his life!

Just then, the doors opened making everyone turn their attention to them as they saw light shining from the room as power surged forth.

"No. Quick, attack the Avatar!" Zhao ordered.

The soldiers and Sages then sent a blast fo fire at the figure they saw in the light, but were stunned when the fire circled around the figure and the flames faded to reveal Avatar Roku!

Zhao was stricken with terror as he stared into the glowing eyes of the former Avatar who was untouched by the flames.

"Avatar Roku..." Shyu whispered.

Roku then moved the flames in a similar motion that Daisuke had used and he then launched it forward in a powerful wave that seared the room and knocked his enemies off their feet.

The attack also melted the pillar and the chains that were binding Katara, Sokka, Shyu and Veemon much to their relief and Zuko rushed out of the room while he could still escape.

Roku then turned his furious gaze onto the four Sages who had turned their backs on the Avatar and they cowarded at the sight of the apparition and then fled.

"Avatar Roku is going to destroy the temple! We have to get out of here!" Shyu yelled.

"Not without Aang!" Daisuke called over the sound of the temple rumbling as it started to fall apart.

Before them, Roku then lifted his hand and caused the lava to bubble to the surface from the ground and it erupted into an explosion that tore through the temple.

Sokka shielded Katara behind a pillar while Veemon ran towards Daisuke as she tried to run away from the lava, knowing she couldn't Bend it.

"Daisuke!" Veemon yelled as his human jumped over the trail of lava and landed on the ground, her side hitting the ground roughly as she landed in front of her dragon.

Veemon grabbed his human's hand and hauled her to her feet as he led her over to the pillar just as Roku lowered his hands as the sunlight from the sanctuary faded from the Avatar's statue.

Smoke then covered the man as he then turned back into Aang, the boy being weak from the possession of the previous Avatar.

"Aang!" Katara called as the group rushed over to the Airbender.

"We got your back." Sokka said as he and his sister lifted Aang to help him onto his feet.

"Thanks. Where's Shyu?" Aang asked as he opened his eyes to look at his friends.

"I don't know." Katara said.

"This place is coming down. Veemon, we're gonna need air support." Daisuke said as she looked down at her partner.

"I'm all over it." Veemon lifted his arms as he nodded.

"Veemon digivolve too...EX-VEEMON!"

Everyone then climbed onto Ex-Veemon's back and held onto Daisuke as she tightened her grip on her dragon's shoulders.

"Hang on!" Ex-Veemon called as he flew upwards and lifted his fists.

He used his V Laser to blast a hole through the cieling and escape into the sky as the group left behind the crumbling temple.

Roaring was the heard making the group turn to see Appa flying towards them and Ex-Veemon met the bison half way.

As everyone jumped into the bison's saddle, Momo then poked his head up to reveal he was wearing one of the Sage's hat.

(That night...)

The Solstice had come to an end, but no one was of high spirits as they rode on Appa as they left Crescent Island where the temple of Avatar Roku now lay in rubble.

To be continued...


	11. The Waterbending Scroll

"The Waterbending Scroll"

**Avatar Wan's song is 'Two Worlds' from Tarzan because he is connected to both the Human World and the Spirit World. Please enjoy and review!**

The next day the group were soaring through the sky on Appa's back and everyone was currently watching as Aang paced in the saddle.

"Would you sit down?!" Sokka snapped from his spot on Appa's head as he was driving the mighty bison.

"If we hit a bump, you'll go flying off. What's bugging you anyway?" the young warrior asked.

"It's what Avatar Roku said. I'm supposed to master all four elements before that comet arrives." Aang explained.

Last night, he had told everyone that Sozin's comet would arrive by summer's end and the comet would give the Firebenders great power and they would be unbeatable.

Aang would have to master all four elements by that time if he hoped to be able to face Ozai and defeat him and end the war.

"Well, let's see. You pretty much mastered Airbending and that only took you 112 years. I'm sure you can master three more elements by next summer." Sokka said with a slight smirk.

"You're hilarious." Daisuke quipped as brushed out her long hair with a comb that had been carved out of whale bone that Katara gave her.

She had forgotten how difficult her long, thick hair was to manage and she was tempted to cut it all off, but Veemon begged her not too.

"Thank you." Sokka chirped making Daisuke roll her eyes.

"I haven't even started Waterbending and we're still weeks away from the North Pole! What am I gonna do?" Aang clutched his head as he began pacing again.

"Calm down, Aang, it's okay." Katara said.

The Waterbender took the boy's hands as she pulled him down in front of her to try and calm the stressed Avatar down.

"If you want, I can teach you some of the stuff I know." the brunette female offered.

"You'd do that?" Aang asked with a smile starting to light up his face.

Katara nodded at him in assurance and then looked off to the side of the saddle.

"We'll need to find a good source of water." she said.

"Maybe we can find a puddle for you to splash in." Sokka quipped making Daisuke and Veemon roll their eyes at the teenager.

(Later...)

Appa then flew down into a forest clearing and when he landed, the group jumped off of the bison and Sokka stared at the large river and waterfall with a blank expression while Aang, Katara, Daisuke and Veemon were all happy at the sight of it.

"Nice puddle." Sokka commented dryly.

Appa then jumped into the river and a wave splashed at Veemon and Momo, knocking them down and they sputtered in annoyance as the bison floated along happily.

"Yeah! Don't start without me, boy!" Aang cheered as he stripped down to his underwear.

"Remember the reason we're here." Katara reminded, stopping the boy from running to the river.

"Oh, right." Aang said sheepishly.

"Time to practise Waterbending." Aang said as he started to redress himself after Veemon threw his clothing at him.

"I think I'm gonna practise some Firebending." Daisuke spoke up as she flipped her hair out of her face.

"But you don't know any Firebending moves." Veemon pointed out.

"Then I'll just go with the flow." the girl shrugged as she bounced over to the river area where she felt the sun shining down on the most.

"Great. So What am I supposed to do?" Sokka asked since he was the only one who didn't need to practise.

"You could...clean the gunk out of Appa's toes!" Aang suggested as he held up a branch with leaves out to the young warrior.

Sokka scowled as he crossed his arms and looked at the three Benders.

"So, while you guys are playing in the water and Daisuke's playing with fire, I'm supposed to be hard at work picking mud out of a giant bison's feet?" Sokka questioned skeptically.

"Mud and bugs." Aang grinned as he still held the branch out.

"Okay." Sokka shrugged as he accepted the branch and walked over to where the bison was floating on his back in the river.

Stretching herself out, Daisuke then took in a deep breath as she soaked the sun into her pores and smiled at the warmth.

She then focused on her emotions and created a stream of golden flame in her hands and started moving it around her body in a dance as she moved around.

Whirling towards the river, she then punched her fist out and a blast of flames shot out over the river making steam rise from the water.

Her head then got a bit dizzy, but she shook it off as she took in a breath.

"Breath. Keep breathing." she reminded herself.

Momo and Veemon were playing in the river, splashing water at each other as they giggled and chittered excitedly.

Sokka was standing on Appa's stomach as he rubbed the branch he held between the bison's toes.

"Yeah, don't get too happy. You've got to do me next." Sokka said as Appa growled happily as he wiggled his clean toes.

Daisuke was then coiling a flame around her body as she moved it like a wave and sent it into the water, making more steam rise.

A few feet away from her was where Katara and Aang stood, watching the Firebender as she practised, then turned to look at each other to get ready for their lesson.

"This is a pretty basic move, but it still took me months to perfect. So don't get frustraded if you don't get it right away." Katara told the boy.

Turning to the water, she then started moving her hands back and forth, creating a small wave from her movements.

"Just push and pull the water like this. The key is getting the wrist movement right." the girl instructed.

"Like this?" Aang asked as he moved his hands back and forth, but frowned when nothing happened.

"That's almost right. If you keep practicing I'm sure eventually-"Katara was then cut off.

"Hey, I'm Bending already!" Aang exclaimed as he created waves with his movements that were bigger than the ones Katara had made which stunned the girl.

"Wow, I can't believe you got that so quickly. It took me two months to learn that move." Katara stated in surprise at the boy's progress.

"Well, you had to figure it out all on your own. I'm lucky enough to have a great teacher." Aang gave the girl a smile.

"Thanks." Katara smiled feeling a bit more confident.

Veemon overheard this and scoffed.

"Kiss up. That ain't gonna get ya a girl." he muttered as he then turned his attention back to his partner as she kicked and punched flames into the river.

She didn't want to accidentally set the forest on fire and get a nature spirit mad at her, especially not the Aye-Aye.

He already didn't like humans, so she didn't want to give him a reason to hate her.

Momo was clapping at the sight of the gold colored flames that seemed to sparkle in the sunlight, almost like fireflies.

"So, what's next?" Aang asked the Waterbender cheerfully.

"This is a more difficult move. I call it streaming the water." Katara said as she moved her arms and lifted up a stream of water and Bent it through the air much like Daisuke was doing with her fire.

"It's harder than it looks, so don't be disapointed if-"Katara stopped talking when she looked over at Aang and dropped her water with a frown.

The Avatar was Bending a stream of water around his body and coiled it over his head before he then Bent the water back into the river.

"Nice work, though the over the head flare was unnecessary." Katara frowned in jealousy.

"Sorry. Well, don't stop now! Keep 'em coming!" Aang said eagerly.

"Well, I kind of know this one other move, but it's pretty hard. I haven't even totally figured it out yet. The idea is to create a big, powerful wave." the Waterbender instructed.

Stepping away from Aang, Katara then raised her hands up into the air and the water followed her movements, a wave rising.

The girl grunted and started to shake from lifting the wave, but it popped before she could properly Bend it.

"So, like this?" Aang asked as he copied the girl's movements and raised a massive wave from the lake much to her shock and jealousy.

Seeing the wave, Sokka grew nervous when he saw that the water was moving towards him and the Firebending Daisuke.

"Uh, Aang?" Sokka called.

Just then, the wave crashed down making Daisuke, Sokka and Veemon cry out when they were hit and Momo shrieked at being soaked.

"AANG!" Daisuke screamed in anger while Veemon spat water out of his mouth and Sokka stared at the Avatar in annyance.

"I did not ask for a bath." Veemon pouted as Momo hopped up onto his head and shook off the water making Sokka whine as he was hit by the flying drops of water.

"Looks like I got the hang of that move. What else ya got?" Aang asked happily at his achievment.

"That's enough practise for today." Katara said feeling very irritated.

"Yeah, I'll say. You just 'practised' our supplies down the river." Sokka snapped.

"Uh, sorry. I'm sure we can find somewhere to replace all this stuff." Aang assured with a nervous grin.

"My life was hard enough when you were just an Airbender." Sokka grumbled as he sunk back into the river.

Looking off to the side, he found Daisuke soaking up the sunlight and he saw the steam rising off of her as she dried herself off with her Bending.

"That's just not fair!" Sokka cried as he pointed at the girl who stuck her tongue out at him.

(At the market...)

The group had found a market place that were selling food and various other objects.

As the group walked along through the town, they were a bit wary, all except for the oblivious Aang, of the rugged looking people and the looks they were getting from them.

"Hey, Daisuke, I think I know why they call this a bazar." Veemon chirped.

"Why's that, Veemon?" Daisuke sighed, knowing that he was about to make some awful joke.

"Because this place is bizarre!" Veemon grinned.

Sokka snorted at that before he started laughing making Katara and Daisuke frown at the two males.

"We've got exactly three copper pieces left from the money that King Bumi gave us. Let's spend it wisely." Sokka advised when he grew serious.

"Uh, make that two copper pieces, Sokka. I couldn't say no to this whistle!" Aang said sheepishly as he held up a white bison shaped whistle.

The group gave him indredious looks as the boy then took in a deep breath and blew into the whistle making the group cover their ears, but no sound came out.

Momo and Veemon's ears twitched and they started whining in annoyance at the high pitched sound they had heard.

"It doesn't even work. See? Even Momo and Veemon think its a piece of junk." Sokka said.

"No offense, Aang, but I'll hold the money from now on." Katara held her hand out for the two copper coins and Aang handed them to the girl with a pout.

"C'mon. Let's go find some food already." Daisuke said as she picked Veemon up and carried him off.

"You think we can find any chocolate here?" the dragon asked making his human shake her head at him and he pouted.

The group then walked off and looked around curiously at the people who were trying to lure people over to their carts to sell their merchandise.

"Earth Nation! Fire Nation! Water Nation! So long as bargains are your inclination, you're welcome here! Don't be shy, come on by!" a man with brown haired dressed in green clothing standing near a ship called.

Daisuke, Sokka, Katara and Aang then passed by the man who took notice of the group of oddly dressed teenagers and he ran up to them.

"Oh! You there. I can see from your clothing that you're world traveling types. Perhaps I can interest you in some exotic curios?" the man offered.

Interested, Aang then twirled around and stood in front of the man with an excited expression.

"Sure! What are curios?" he asked.

"I'm not entirely sure, but we got 'em!" the grinned as he steered Aang in the direction of the ship.

"We need to put a leash on that kid." Veemon muttered as he, Daisuke, Katara and Sokka all frowned as they followed the Airbender onto the ship.

When the group walked onto the ship, they were all stunned by the weapons, artifacts and scrolls that were displayed.

Aang was looking over an object on the shelf curiously as Katara stared at a statue of a monkey that had rubies for eyes.

Sokka was glancing around at the rugged men on the ship with a suspicious expression while Daisuke was looking around in awe.

"I've never seen such a fine specimen of lemur. That beast could fetch me a hefty sum if you'd be interested in bartering." a man with a reptilian bird perched on his shoulder said as he stood beside Aang.

He was dressed in black and wore a hat that was similar to a pirate's hat, only it was smaller and didn't have a feather.

The 12 year old boy grabbed Momo off his shoulder and held the lemur-bat to his chest protectively.

"Momo's not for sale." Aang told the man.

The man hummed in thought as he then looked over at the other teenager dressed in orange and was stunned to see the creature she had in her arms.

"By the spirits, is that a real dragon?" he asked in shock.

Hearing this, Daisuke looked over at the man as he stepped up to her and looked down at Veemon with a greedy gleam in his eyes.

"What of it?" she asked with a glare.

"Do you know what a mighty beast like that would sell at? A thousand or even a two-thousand gold pieces. Where did you find such a fine and rare specimen such as this?" the man demanded.

"I found his egg in a cave." Daisuke deadpanned as she held Veemon closer to her body in a protective way.

Two years ago she had gone to the Digital World with her friends TK, Kari and Tai where they found a cave that had the digi egg of Courage inside.

Only she had been able to lift it and then Veemon appeared in a pillar of light and claimed excitedly that the mahogany haired girl was his partner.

"I see. Do you wish to sell this creature? I'll give you a fair amount for the perchase. You have my word on it." the man said.

"No way!" Daisuke glared as she walked off from him as Veemon blew a raspberry at the man.

Sokka was staring at the man with a frown as he walked over to the Firebender and wrapped an arm around her waist as he pulled her away from the man, not trusting her to be left alone near the people on the ship.

Meanwhile, Katara was looking over the scrolls on a shelf and picked one up when she noticed the symbol for the Water Tribe on it.

Opening the scroll, she gasped in amazement at the drawings that were on it.

"Look at this, Aang! It's a Waterbending scroll! Check out these crazy moves." Katara called the boy over.

"Where did you get a Waterbending scroll?" Aang asked the men excitedly.

The man then slammed his hand down on the scroll and rolled it back up before he then placed it back on the shelf.

"Let's just say I got it up North at a most reasonable price; free." the man said as Sokka and Daisuke walked over to join their friends.

"Wait a minute... Sea loving traders with suspicious acquired merchandise and pet reptile birds? You guys are pirates!" Sokka yelled intot he face of the man who lured them onto the ship.

"We prefer to think of ourselves as high risk traders." the man in green said as he wrapped an arm around Sokka's shoulders.

"So, how much for the, uh, traded scroll?" Katara asked the captain as she looked at the two copper pieces in her hand.

"I've already got a buyer, a nobleman in teh Earth Kingdom. Unless of course you kids have two hundred gold pieces on you right now." the captain sneered.

"I know how to deal with these guys, Katara. Pirates love to haggle." Aang whispered to the girl and the skeptic girl handed over to coins.

"Watch and learn." Aang grinned while Daisuke and Veemon watched with doubtfull looks as Momo flew over and perched himself on the girl's head.

Aang dramatically presented one of the two copper coins to the captain which caused his to laugh at the fact that the boy thought he would accept his offer.

"The price is two-hundred gold pieces. I don't haggle items this rare." the captain told the Airbender.

"Okay, two copper pieces." Aang smirked as he talked like a pirate.

"It's not amusing the second time, boy." the captain glared in annoyance.

"Aang, can we get out of here? I feel like we're getting weird looks." Katara walked up to him and whispered.

"Aye, we be casting off now." Aang said in pirate talk as he lifted up his staff.

"Stop. That's not funny." Daisuke told the boy who pouted at her.

Katara then led the group out of the ship and they continued their walk down the streets.

"What was that all about, Katara?" Aang asked the brunette female curiously.

"Yeah, I was just starting to browse their boomerang collection." Sokka complained.

"I'll just feel a lot better once we get away from here." Katara shrugged innocently.

"Well, I'm glad to get away. Those pirates make me wanna burn the ship down." Daisuke frowned.

"Hey, you!" the man in green yelled as the pirates ran off the ship with their weapons.

"Well, well. Look who's come to their senses. Told you the haggling would pay off." Aang smirked as he turned to face the angry pirates.

"I don't think these pirates are here to trade with us." Katara said as she took a steo back fearfully.

The group then took off running as the pirates chased after the, through the town.

As they turned down an alley, they found the cabbage merchant from Omashu was pushing a cabbage cart and was surprised when Sokka, Katara and Daisuke bumped into the cart as they ran by.

Aang then jumped over the cart, but then used his Airbending to propel the cart into the pirates making the merchant cry out.

"My cabbages! This place is worst than Omashu!" the merchant shrieked in anger.

As the group ran off down the street, they were stunned to see a group of the pirates jump out in front of them.

"I hope that lemur and dragon of yours have nine lives!" the captain yelled as the group turned and fled from the angry men.

They then stopped when they found themselves at a dead end, a wall blocking their path as the pirates walked up behind them.

"Now, who gets to taste the steele of my blade first?" the man in green asked sinsterly as he twirled his knives.

"No thanks!" Aang shouted as he spun around and sent a blast of air at the pirates, pushing them backwards.

Opening his glider, he then turned to his friends.

"Grab on!" he called.

"I thought we were running away from the pirates!" Katara yelled as she, Sokka and Daisuke jumped onto the Airbender.

"Just hang on!" Aang called as he then rushed at the pirates and took to the air and flew over the men.

(Back at the camp...)

"I used to kinda look up to pirates. But those guys are terrible." Aang commented as he snapped hsi glider shut.

"I know. That's why I took this!" Katara said with a mischivous look as she pulled out the Waterbending scroll.

"No way!" Aang gasped.

"You took that from them?" Daisuke gaped in shock.

"Isn't it great?" Katara said excitedly, but then stepped back when her brother stood in front of her with a stern look.

"No wonder they wanted to hack us up! You stole their Waterbending scroll." Sokka yelled.

"I prefer to think of it as high risk trading." Katara joked making Aang laugh while Veemon and Daisuke glared in a disaproving way.

"Good one, Katara." Aang chuckled.

"Yeah, it'll be hilarious when those pirates find us and hack us to ribbons." Daisuke crossed her arms.

"Sokka, Daisuke, where do you think they got it? They stole it from a Waterbender!" Katara exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter. You put all of our lives in anger just so you could learn some stupid, fancy splashes!" Sokka snapped.

"These are real Waterbending forms. You know how crucial it is for Aang to learn Waterbending." Katara stated to justify her actions.

"Well, what's done is done. We have it, we migth as well learn from it." Aang said.

"This is gonna come back to bite us." Veemon crossed his arms with a frown.

Knowing that the decision was final, the group moved closer to the lake so that the Waterbender and Airbender could continue their training.

"I just want to try this one move first and then it's all yours. Here, hold it open for me." Katara said as she handed the scroll over to Aang.

He held the scroll open and the girl looked over the figures drawn on the paper while Sokka, Daisuke, Veemon, Momo and Appa stood nearby to watch.

"The single water whip. Looks doable." Katara nodded.

Taking a stance, she then Bent the water into a whip and lashed her arms out, but the water reacted like a whip when not used properly and it reared back, hitting the girl in the forehead.

"Ow!" Katara gasped at the sudden attack making Sokka, Veemon and Daisuke laugh at her misfortune and she glared over at them.

"What's so funny?" Katara demanded.

"I'm sorry, but you deserved that." Sokka stated as he then turned his attention to Aang.

"You've been duped. She's only interested in teaching herself." the young warrior informed.

"Aang will get his turn once I figure out the water whip!" Katara snapped in anger at her smug brother.

Turning back to the river, she repeated her actions, only she made the whip too long and it reared back further, hitting Momo on the rear.

Momo screached in pain as he then jumped into Daisuke's arms and the girl pet his head to comfort the distressed lemur-bat.

"Ugh! Why can't I get this stupid move?!" Katara yelled in frustration.

"You'll get it." Aang assured as he placed the scroll on a stump and then walked over to the lake to try out the move which made Katara scowl at him.

"You just got to shift through your stances." Aang demonstrated as he tried to movements and everyone watched as the water whip was performed perfectly.

"There, see? The key to Bending is-"

Will you please shut your air hole?!" Katara finally snapped at the boy, stunning everyone as they stared at the angered girl.

"Believe it or not, your infinite wisdom gets a little old sometimes. Why don't we just throw the scroll away since you're so naturally gifted!" the girl yelled.

"HEY!" Daisuke shouted harshly making the Waterbender turn to the glaring Firebender while Sokka was also glaring along with Veemon.

"What?" Katara demanded.

She then turned her attention to Aang and her anger subsided to horror when she found the boy was staring at her hurt with tears in his gray eyes.

"Oh my gosh, Aang, I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. But, you know what, it won't happen again." Katara assured with a guilty expression.

"It better not." Daisuke muttered as her eyes burned red.

"Here, this is yours. I don't want to have anything to do with it anymore." Katara said as she picke dup teh scroll and held it out to Aang to take.

"It's okay, Katara." Aang smiled at her in forgiveness.

"What about Momo? He's the real victim here." Sokka said with a grin as he gestured to the lemur-bat who was hiding in Daisuke's arms.

"I'm sorry, Momo." Katara appologized as she pet Momo's head.

"And what about me? There was that time you-"

No more appologies!" Katara snapped at her brother.

(That night...)

Everyone had gone to sleep, tired from the long day they had, but Katara then awoke and looked around at the three creatures and three humans to make sure they were sleeping.

Once she was sure they were all asleep, she snuck over to Aang's bag and riffled through it and smiling in victory when she found the Waterbending scroll.

When she turned to leave, she was stunned to find Momo was behind her and started to chitter and the sound made Daisuke moan in her sleep.

"Shh, Momo! Go back to sleep. Shh!" Katara whispered as she then escaped into the forest.

Unknown to her, Daisuke had heard what she had said and blinked the sleep out of her eyes as she sat up and frowned.

"What are you up to?" she whispered as she then chased after Katara.

Keeping to the shadows, Daisuke slipped from tree to tree as she listened to the sound of angry grunts and yelps of pain.

They led her to the lake and she found Katara was once again trying to accomplish the water whip, but only managed to hit herself in the forehead.

"Ugh, ugh, ugh! Shoot!" Katara yelped when she hit herself once again.

"Come on, water, work with me here! Okay, what if I just-Ow! Stupid scroll!" the girl complained when she hit herself with the water whip again.

"What are you doing?" Daisuke asked making Katara gasp as she whirled around to stare at the trees.

"Daisuke?" Katara asked as she saw the Firebender step out from the shadows and was stunned to see how dramatically her appearance changed due to the moonlight.

Her eyes were now a rich dark chocolate and her hair was glowing a burgundy color due to the darkness.

"Well? What are you doing out here?" Daisuke asked with her hands on her hips.

"I, well, I... I was just trying to get this water whip down. I don't know why I can't get it!" Katara exclaimed in frustration.

"Maybe you're trying too hard." Daisuke suggested as she walked over.

"Yeah, it looks like Aang doesn't have that problem." Katara muttered.

"Aang has already mastered Waterbending. He's the Avatar. He's done this before for the 9000 or so years. Of course it's easy for him. To be honest, if he got Firebending easier than me, I'd be pretty ticked off too." Daisuke smiled.

Looking at the other girl, Katara allowed herself to smile as well and turned back to look at the lake.

"So, what should I do?" she asked.

"You can come quietly." someone spoke.

Gasping, the two girls turned around when they heard the sound of metal scarping and saw one of the pirates was there.

"Oh no!" Katara gasped.

"Come on!" Daisuke grabbed her friend's hand and started running.

Her path was cut off by Zuko who stepped out from behind a tree and grabbed the female Firebender's arms, stopping her from running.

"Don't worry. I'll save you from the pirates." Zuko sneered making Daisuke glare up at him.

(Later...)

Katara and Daisuke were then tied up to a tree, both standing side by side since Zuko knew the Firebender wouldn't use her powers because she would burn her friend if she did.

"Tell me where he is and I won't hurt you or your brother." Zuko said as he stood in front of the two girls.

"Go jump in a river!" Katara snapped.

"Try to understand. I need to capture him to restore something I've lost; my honor." Zuko said as he then strolled around the tree.

He noticed that the Water Tribe girl refused to meet his eyes, but the Firebender had no issue with watching his every move.

"Perhaps in exchange, I can restore something you've lost. That you've both lost." the Prince whispered into Daisuke's ear.

Just then, Zuko lifted two necklaces out of his pocket making the girls gasp at the sight of the gold pendant and the blue necklace.

"My mother's necklace!" Katara gasped.

"And my grams' pendant. You had them all along." Daisuke glared heatedly at the Prince.

"How did you get them?" Katara demanded as Zuko pulled away from the girls with a smirk.

"I didn't steal it if that's what you're wondering. Tell me where he is." Zuko demanded.

"No!" Katara yelled.

"Forget it!" Daisuke shouted.

"Enough of this necklace garbage! You promised a scroll!" the pirate captain then stepped forward.

"I wonder how much this is worth..." Zuko mused as he held up the scroll in one hand while the other created a flame.

The pirates and Katara then grew nervous at the sight of the flame, not wanting the scroll to be destroyed for their own reasons.

"A lot apparently. Now, you help me find what I want, you'll get this back and everyone goes home happy. Search the woods for the boy and meet back here." Zuko ordered.

"Fine." the captain growled as he led his men off into the woods to search for the Avatar.

"You have one heck of a way with people. If they stab you in the back, I won't be surprised." Daisuke commented making Zuko glare at her.

"Do you ever shut up?" he snarled.

"No, I don't. Especially when I'm kidnapped and tied up by a hot headed creep. The Digimon Emperor and the freak with the mutton chops are a perfect example of that." Daisuke smirked wickedly.

Iroh chuckled lowly in humour at the girl while Zuko was glowering at the girl in front of him.

She was just so frustrating!

"Look here, you little traitor. You are now my prisoner and you're at my mercy. You will obey me or things will get very unpleasant." Zuko said lowly.

"You've got issues dude. Also, I'm not a traitor." the girl said.

"You've sided with the Avatar instead of the Fire Lord! You are a traitor to your Nation!" Zuko snapped.

"I wasn't born in the Fire Nation!" she yelled.

"It doesn't matter if you weren't!" Zuko yelled as he leaned forward, his nose almost touching hers as the two Firebenders glared at each other.

Iroh and Katara remained silent as they watched the two teenagers argue with each other back and forth, unsure of who would win this verbal battle.

"You are still a Firebender and so you should be following the Fire Lord." Zuko growled.

"I don't care! I choose who to follow and I refuse to have anything to do with that monster!" Daisuke yelled angering the Prince further.

"Watch your tongue! If you stay with the Avatar, you and that dragon of yours will suffer greatly." Zuko warned and grew interested when he saw the rage fill the girl's eyes.

"Don't you EVER threaten Veemon!" Daisuke spat as sparks of flames spewed from her mouth making Zuko lean back to avoid them.

"Prince Zuko, let's not irritate these young ladies. I'm sure the good captain and his men will arrive soon enough with their friends. Relax." Iroh chided with a calm grin.

Zuko frowned over at his uncle, then huffed as he turned away from the two girls, but kept the information he had been given back into his mind.

It appeared that the Firebender female was very protective of her dragon and grew easily enraged when his safety was threatened.

This could easily be a way to manipulate the girl.

(Later on...)

The sun was beginning to rise in the sky when the pirates finally returned with Aang, Sokka, Momo and Veemon tied up in a net.

"Nice work." Zuko praised as he stood in front of the gathered pirates.

"Aang, this is all my fault." Katara said sadly to the boy.

"No, Katara, it isn't." Aang tried to reassure with a small smile.

"Yeah, it kind of is." Iroh countered with a slight nod of his head making the teenagers frown at him.

"Give me the boy." Zuko demanded as he held the Waterbending scroll.

"You give us the scroll." the captain countered.

"You're really gonna hand over the Avatar for a stupid piece of parchment?" Sokka aksed in surprise.

"Don't listen to him. He's trying to turn us against each other!" Zuko glared at the young warrior.

"Your friend is the Avatar?" the captain asked Sokka.

"Sure is. And I'll bet he'll fetch a lot more on the black market than that fancy scroll." Sokka said slyly.

"Shut your mouth you Water Tribe peasant!" Zuko snarled at the 15 year old.

"Yeah, Sokka, you really should shut your mouth." Aang whispered to his older friend who simply shrugged in responce.

"I'm just sayin' it's bad business sense. Just imagine how much the Fire Lord would pay for the Avatar. You guys would be set for life." Sokka said.

The captain seemed to think over the boy's words and his greed grew when he came to his decision.

"Keep the scroll. We can buy a hundred with the reward we'll get for the kids." the captain sneered at Zuko.

"You'll regret breaking a deal with me." Zuko warned as he narrowed his eyes at the pirates.

Zuko and two of his soldiers then sent out streams of fire at the pirates causing the men to jump back and the man in green threw a smoke bomb that exploded.

"Daisuke, can we hear the magic words?" Veemon called.

Blinking at this, Daisuke nodded as she felt for her D-Terminal.

"DIGI ARMOUR ENERGIZE!"

Orange light filled the area, blinding everyone as the blue dragon started to transform.

"Veemon armour digivolve too..."

"What is this?" Zuko asked as he lifted an arm to cover his eyes.

"Flamedramon: the Fire of Courage!"

Sokka, Aang and Katara stared in awe at the slim blue dragon who wore an orange mask that had flame designs on it with a blade sticking out and he wore a matching chest plate and shoulder pads.

Flamedramon's hands had become large and had flame designs of them as three blades stuck out of them and his feet had plates on them with flame designs.

"Is that Veemon?" Aang asked.

"What happened to Ex-Veemon?" Katara asked.

"Veemon can digivolve into three different Digimon of the Champion level. It's just that the third one only happens on very rare occasions." Daisuke shrugged.

"Why didn't you tell us this?" Sokka called.

"I forgot I had my D-Terminal with me!" Daisuke shrugged making Sokka groan in disbelief.

"Come on. Let's get out of here." Flamedramon said as he used his claws to slice through the rope tying the girls to the tree.

"Thanks, Veemon, I owe ya one." Katara smiled.

"It's Flamedramon now. Let's go." the dragon said as he pulled his partner into his arms and jumped into the smoke.

Aang and Sokka got free and ran off into the smoke to try and escape, but started fighting off the pirates and the soldiers.

"Man, I can't see anything in those smoke." Daisuke said as Flamedramon set her down.

Suddenly, a blast of flames as sent at them, but Flamedramon used his Flame Fist to block the attack and growled as he spotted the Prince running through the smoke.

Jumping through the smoke, Flamedramon charged at Zuko and knocked the Prince to the ground and the pendant fell to the ground.

Seeing the pendant, Flamedramon quickly grabbed it just as Zuko sent a blast of flames at the dragon and the collar was burned off, but the pendant was safe.

"Why do you work for that girl?" Zuko demanded.

"Because she's my partner. I was born to be with her." Flamedramon said as he then took off into the smoke.

Momo screeched as he flew by Daisuke, trying to escape the parrot that was chasing after him.

"Beat it ya rat with wings!" Daisuke yelled as she threw a fireball at the bird making it cry out as it flew off.

Flying over to the Firebender, Momo sat on her shoulder and purred as he rubbed his head against Daisuke's cheek.

"You're welcome, Momo." she cooed as she rubbed his head.

"Aang, are you there?" Sokka shouted as he crawled through the smoke.

"I'm over here! Follow my voice!" Aang called as he looked around the smoke filled area.

"Where? I can't find you!" Sokka yelled.

"I'm right here!" Aang yelled.

Whirling around, he then blew the smoke away and revealed Daisuke who was only a few feet away from him along with Flamedramon and the pirates.

"Put it back, put it back!" Daisuke cried as she hugged Momo who screeched in fear as the pirates raised their weapons.

Quickly, Aang pulled the smoke back around the field to hide himself and his friends from the angry pirates.

"Never mind, I'll find you!" Aang called back.

Flamedramon grabbed Daisuke and vaulted over the smoke just as Aang did while Sokka crawled out from under the smoke as the pirates and soldiers continued fighting each other.

"Run!" Aang yelled as the groupp took off running towards the water.

They saw the pirates ship was in the lake and Katara was looking it over curiously as she tried to push the ship.

"Katara, you're okay." Aang said.

"Help me get this boat back in the water so we can get outta here." Katara said as the group helped her push, but the boat was stuck.

"We'd need a team of rhinos to budge this ship." Sokka stated as the group stepped back.

"A team of rhinos or two Waterbenders." Aang smiled at Katara who returned the look as they got into position.

They pushed and pulled at the water untilt he boat rose from the waves and rolled out onto the water.

"Everybody in!" Katara called.

"You don't have to tell us twice." Daisuke said as Flamedramon picked her up and jumped onto the ship as the others ran on board.

As soon as they set off, they found the pirates following them in Zuko's ship.

"Sokka, can't you make this thing go any faster?" Aang asked when he spotted the pirates.

"I don't know how. This thing wasn't made by the Water Tribe." Sokka called back as he tried to steer the wheel.

"Oh, great. Here comes trouble." Daisuke said as the pirates' hijacked ship was now level with theirs.

Flamedramon then used hsi Fire Rocket, blasting the flames at the pirates before they could set foot on the ship.

Taking a stance, Daisuke sent a blast of golden flames at the pirates, stunning them as they jumped back from the attack.

Some of the pirates had managed to jump aboard the ship, but were knocked off by Aang Bending a large wave at them.

One of the pirates managed to grip the ship and stay aboard and then climbed to his feet making Katara frown in consentration as she then performed the water whip, knocking the pirate off the ship.

"Hey, you did the water whip!" Aang congratulated the girl.

"I couldn't have done it without your help." Katara stated as she smiled at the boy.

"Would you two quit congratulating each other and help me out?" Sokka yelled making everyone turn to see he was being pinned down by two pirates.

"Hang on!" Daisuke called as she ran over and created a whip of flames in her hand as swung it at the pirates' rears making them yelp in pain.

Sokka took that distraction to grab his club and bashed the heads of the two men before he then pushed them off of him.

Aang then vaulted over and used his Airbending to throw the pirates off the ship when Katara gave a terrified shout.

"Aang, look!" the Waterbender cried out.

"Oh, now what?" Flamedramon complained.

The ship was sailing rigth towards a waterfall which made the group gasp in horror.

"Oh no..." Aang paled at the sight.

Hearing the sound of a blade being drawn, Aang turned to see the man in green was still on the ship and was making his way towards the Avatar.

Aang then pulled out his bison whistle and started blowing it making the man stare at him in confusion, which allowed Sokka the time he needed to shove the man off the ship and into the water.

"Have you lost your mind?! This is no time for flute practise!" Sokka ranted.

"We can stop the boat! Aang, together, push and pull the water!" Katara called as she turned to the Airbender.

The two then stood with their backs facing each other as they pushed and pulled at the water in the lake, creating waves that slowly started to stop the ship.

"It's working, it's slowing down! We're doing it!" Katara exclaimed happily.

"But we have another problem." Sokka called as he spotted the pirates sailing after them in Zuko's boat.

The boat then rammed into the ship, sending the four humans and Digimon rolling to the edge of the ship.

"Jump!" Aang yelled as he grabbed Katara and Sokka's hands.

Flamedramon gathered Daisuke in his arms while Momo clung to his bllade and the Digimon jumped out of the ship, following the Avatar and his two companions.

Just as they fell over the waterfall, Appa came flying towads them and caught the group in his saddle and flew off just as the ship and boat went crashing down below.

"I knew a bison whistle would come in handy. Thanks, Appa." Aang grinned.

"Yeah, we owe ya one." Sokka said to the bison.

"Aang, I owe you an apology still." Katara said to the boy making him look at her.

"No, you don't Katara." Aang told her.

"Yes, I do. You just got Waterbending so easily that I got competitive and I put us all in danger. Besides, who needs that dumb scroll anyway?" Katara asked.

"Are you sure about that?" Sokka asked slyly as he held up the scroll.

"The scroll!" Katara gasped as her eyes grew wide.

"What did we learn?" Sokka asked his sister condisendingly.

"Stealing is wrong." Katara said sincerely, before she then snatched the scroll from her brother's hand.

"Unless it's from pirates." she smirked making Daisuke giggle at the look on the young warrior's face.

"Nice one, Katara." Aang laughed.

"You know, Zuko and I had a nice conversation earlier." Flamedramon spoke up making the group look at him.

"Oh, really? What did you and the Prince of Hot Heads talk about?" Daisuke joked.

Smirking, Flamedramon then held up his large paw and opened it to reveal the pendant.

"He asked me to make sure you got this back." he said.

"Ah, Flamedramon!" Daisuke exclaimed happily as she took her pendant back.

The white collar had been badly burned and she wouldn't be able to wear it, but she was just thankful that she had her grams' pendant back.

Throwing her arms around her dragon's neck, she hugged him tightly and kissed the side of his mask making Flamedramon blush.

"You're the best." Daisuke said.

"Aw, come on, Daisuke. You're making me blush." Flamedramon chuckled bashfully as the others all laughed.

To be continued...


End file.
